Fuuka Mental Institution
by 0-SilverWolf-0
Summary: Natsuki finds herself in an Institution for the mentally disabled. Here, she spends her life and meets Doctor Shizuru Fujino. Together, hopefully they can pull Natsuki away from the depths of her sick mind.
1. Chapter 1

Fuuka Mental Institution

Chapter 1

She was only fifteen when she was put into an asylum. She had been a good girl all of her life, but now, she didn't understand why she had to be locked away. Maybe it was because she liked to cut herself because the color of her bubbling blood was so interesting; perhaps she wasn't supposed to rock back and forth on the couch; she didn't know that yelling in church was bad; she thought that throwing plates on the floor was a good idea, because she loved to play with the shards of glass; she didn't think it was wrong to scream and kick in the groceries stores; she liked knocking over the shelves in jewelry stores; but, then, why was she sent here? She had been to a mental doctor many times, and even they couldn't seem to cure her. When her mother woke up with a a hairdo that was performed by her daughter, she took the girl to the asylum. All the child wanted to do was pet the hair on the couch, but the blue hair was connected to her mom, so she cut the hair, not waking her mother.  
Her eyes were a deep emerald green, her cheekbones were high and pink, and her deep sea of blue hair waved in the wind while the doctors in the clean white coats helped her down from the truck that had carried her to Fuuka Mental Institution. She looked over to the black car that was following the ambulance, and her mother stepped out, wearing a hat that hid the disaster on her head. The teenager reached for her mom, but when the men held her back, she opened her mouth and screamed in agony. Quickly, the older woman ran to her daughter's side, and the doctors stepped away, allowing the woman access to her child. The poor girl latched around her mother and squeezed her tightly until the woman, who was considerably strong for herself, picked the child up and carried her into the asylum.  
She saw a little piece of her mother's hair hanging out of the hat, and she reached up and caressed it with her fingers. Humming softly, she sat on her mother's lap in the waiting room while people prepared for her visit.  
"Kuga?"  
Her mother stood up and followed the female nurse into a hallway that led to a room at the end of the hall. It was carpeted, and some toys made by Fischer Price were on the floor; the nurse had the woman sit on the couch. She still held the child in her arms, but when the nurse handed the woman a clipboard, the child had to leave her mother's lap. She went directly to the toys, and found a small plush dog and cuddled it to her chest. She turned to look at her mother, who had tears dripping down her cheeks.  
"Mama?"  
No response.  
"Mama?" The girl called again.  
This time the mother went to kneel by the child. She placed her hands on the girl's shoulders and kissed her forehead.  
"You be a good girl, okay?"  
The woman wiped a tear from her cheek and reached into her pocket, pulling out a rabbit's foot made of her hair that her daughter had cut off. She looked to the emerald eyed girl and handed her the rabbit foot. The girl took it, and rubbed it on her cheek.  
"I love you, and I'll come visit, I promise."  
The woman stood up and took one last look at her daughter before leaving the room. The nurse smiled before she shut the door, and when it was sealed, she locked it, and went to sit back on the couch.  
"Natsuki?"  
The blue haired girl looked up to the nurse and cocked her head to the right. She clutched the little dog and the rabbit foot in her hand, and she looked to the door before pouting at it.  
"Natsuki, do you understand me?" The nurse asked, earning a nod.  
"Mama?"  
Natsuki was at the door pulling down on the door handle. It wouldn't move. The girl frantically banged on the door, screaming for her mama.  
"Natsuki, please calm down, she'll come back." the nurse said, pressing a button on her communicator.  
"Mama! Mama!"  
In a few minutes, Natsuki had fallen to her knees and was now banging her head on the door while crying deeply. The nurse had tried to stop her, but Natsuki was too strong. Finally, the nurse was accompanied by three other doctors. They grabbed the blue haired girl's arms and pulled her away from the door, making the rabbit foot slip out of her hand.  
"No! No! Mama! Mama!" Natsuki screeched like she was stabbed. She struggled against the men while reaching for the rabbit foot, but they hadn't noticed, so they continued to pull Natsuki out of a different entrance to the room and into another hallway. The nurse stood in the room, sighing. She had noticed the little foot on the floor, and she picked it up, tucking it into a pocket of her apron.  
Natsuki was still screaming when she was put into a room and locked in. A few female nurses were in the room, and they held some light brown clothing, and a pair of plain tennis shoes. One held Natsuki down, while the other two pulled the child's clothing off, replacing it with the clothing. She was let go when the clothes were on, and one of the nurses took Natsuki's arm, and led her to an elevator that went up to the third floor of the asylum. Gently, Natsuki was handed off to another nurse, who brought her to a small office room. A woman on the other side of the counter looked up at them with a smile, and Natsuki was released.  
The secretary looked at Natsuki, and took a quick snapshot of her from a hidden camera that was wired to the computer. Apparently a copy of the girl's information was emailed to the secretary, and she pulled the picture out of the printer and stapled it to the documents that were connected to a clipboard.  
"This way, Miss Kuga, I'll show you to your room."  
The secretary stood and walked out of the office, motioning for Natsuki to follow. On the way to the patient's quarters, Natsuki noticed a large room with a book stand, a game shelf, a reception area, and a TV.  
"That's the room you will hang out in during the day unless we take you outside with the other patients." The secretary said, stopping at a door.  
She pulled out a marker before hanging the clipboard on a hook above a whiteboard. Then, she used the marker to write out Natsuki's name, labeling that this room was her new room. The woman took a key out of her pocket and slid it into the lock, opening the room. She held the door open for Natsuki, and the girl looked into the room to see a small area, that was carpeted with fluffy black fabric; a bed was in the corner, and a bathroom that was hid by a curtain as a door contained a toilet, and a sink. Natsuki had a window, but it was barred, so the girl wouldn't be able to escape if she tried.  
"This is yours. You have to stay in here at night, and we made sure the bed is comfortable enough. Your mother told us that you don't like hard things, so we had a memory foamed bed imported for you. The blankets are woolen, so you can stay warm, but the sheets are made of silk. Over in that bin, you can put your toys. I see you found a puppy animal, so you could put him in there if you wanted him to give you some alone time. Unfortunately," the secretary continued, "I have to lock you in, but it's only for your safety. If you need anything, just call, alright?"  
"Natsuki is hungry."  
The secretary smiled, "You'll get food in the morning, okay? Tomorrow is going to be a big day, so get some rest."  
The woman cautiously stepped out of the room, closing the giant metal door, securing it so nothing could get in or out.  
Natsuki sat in the dark, but when she hit the bed, she felt right down on it, and drifted into a deep sleep.

Natsuki was awakened by a new doctor, and this woman had bright orange hair, and wore a blue shirt with a black skirt.  
"Good morning!" The girl said cheerfully. "Time to get up! Miss Yohko told me that you were hungry last night, so let's get some food in your belly."  
Natsuki groaned and rolled over, placing her bare feet onto the fluffy carpet. She yawned before she stood up, stretching her body.  
"Come on, let's go."  
Natsuki followed the girl into the hallway, and they crossed diagonally through the entertainment room, and into another that was the cafeteria.  
"I'm Mai, by the way. I'm not an official doctor yet, I'm a doctor in training, so you could call me a nurse."  
Natsuki smelled sausage and pancakes from the service window at the end of the room, all other things, the tables, the chairs, the other patients, were unnoticed. Mai brought Natsuki to the window, and handed her a plate and a fork. Then, she noticed that Natsuki just stood there, looking at the food.  
"Go on, take some food and eat." Mai said, smiling warmly.  
Natsuki grabbed at the food, taking one of everything. Mai had to stop her, but Natsuki wasn't ready to stop, so she pushed at Mai.  
"Natsuki, you can get more, just finish what you have."  
"No! Mama needs food, I have to get food for mama."  
Mai sighed, and pulled a metal cage over the window issuing the cooks a break. This made Natsuki furious, and she was about to lunge at Mai when she realized that her mother wasn't in the room.  
"Where's my mama?"  
"You mama is at home, she already has food."  
"Oh, so mommy doesn't want any?"  
Mai chuckled, happy she avoided a problem with the new patient on her first day. "Your mama doesn't want any, but she wants you to calm down and eat."  
Natsuki moved closer to Mai, and rubbed her cheek on the orange haired girl's shoulder. "I sorry."  
"It's okay, I forgive you. how about this, you come over here to where everyone else is, and you can eat with some company, okay?"  
Natsuki nodded and followed Mai to the lone table in the middle of the room that held five other girls. Mai patted a seat next to a girl with braids.  
"Girls, this is Natsuki, she's new, so be nice." Mai said, patting Natsuki's shoulders when she was seated.  
"Hi!" the girl next to Natsuki yelled, making the teenager jump.  
"Arika, don't yell." Mai scolded.  
"Sorry." the girl said sheepishly, turning back to her food.  
"Natsuki, talk to Arika, she's very much like you, but she's a bit more outgoing. I'll be leaving now, I'll come back in an hour to take you girls to the showers."  
Mai left, leaving Natsuki with the girls. It was a few minutes before Arika turned back to Natsuki.  
"I'm Arika Yumemiya, and you're Natsuki. You live in room four next to Nao and Haruka."  
Natsuki looked at the girl, realizing that she was only about thirteen. Natsuki smiled back at the girl, and she began to make a new friend.  
"Why are you here, kid?"  
"Nao Yuuki, age seventeen, in the Fuuka Mental Institution for stealing, and inflicting self-harm."  
"Arika! Shut your mouth. You really shouldn't go around telling that to people." The girl with the curly blonde hair was loud, and she hissed at Arika.  
"Haruka Suzushiro, age sixteen. In the Fuuka Mental Institution for over-reactions, extreme anger issues, and self inflicted harm."  
"Arika!"  
Before the two girl's could fight, Natsuki had let her face droop while she rested her head in her hands.  
"Natsuki, huh?" Another girl, with bright red-orange hair came to sit next to Natsuki, distracting her from the fray between Haruka and Arika.  
"Midori, that's my name. It can get pretty hectic in here."  
The girl placed a hand on Natsuki's shoulder.  
"If you need anything, come on over and talk to me, I'll be here for you."  
"Natsuki is hungry." Natsuki said in third person, picking up her fork and eating the fresh strawberries that were in her bowl of fruit.  
"You'll meet the others in the meeting with the doctors." Midori said, earning a confused look from Natsuki. "Oh, we have a meeting every other day, and we talk about what has been going on and we share our thoughts with the doctors."  
"Is it fun?"

"Alright everyone, breakfast is over, head to the showers and then come out to the entertainment room for the meeting."  
Natsuki followed Midori, seeing as she was the only one who seemed sane. Midori was always the one that everyone liked, she was kind, she was informant, and she had some influence on a few of the doctors. Natsuki was clutching midori's arm in the shower, like she had never seen water before. Midori had to take a shower with Natsuki clinging on to her, and she was fine with the fact that Natsuki was there, but she would've liked her space. Luckily for Natsuki, she didn't have to let go of Midori, for she was getting soap and water dropped on her from Midori's hair and body.  
"Midori lllllll, age twenty-one, in for chronic medical depression." Arika's voice was heard from across the room.  
"That's obvious, Arika."  
"Arika Yumemiya, age thirteen, in for symptoms of autism, self inflicted harm, and minor medical depression."  
"Why does she do that?" Natsuki asked, looking up at Midori.  
"She does that to remind her that she isn't the only one that's different. It comforts her, and it somehow reminds her of her friends."  
"Nina Wang, age fourteen, in boarding school for extreme smarts, reference, and memory." Arika rambled on. "Erstin Ho, age twenty-three, in America at the University of Harvard for extreme smarts, memory, business association, and excelled social skills."  
"Girls, time to go! Time's up... Where's Natsuki?"  
"She's with me, Mai-sensei."  
Mai waved her way through the steam to see that Natsuki was curled around midori's leg. She smiled, and sighed before grabbing a towel for Natsuki.  
"What do you think, Midori? Is she good?"  
"She's got some problems, I know that."  
Mai was surprised when Natsuki came to her and repeated the motion of rubbing her cheek on the elder's shoulder. Mai wrapped the towel around Natsuki and lead her into a locker room where new sets of clothing stood at the side of each locker. Names above the lockers showed ownership, and Natsuki's was the one at the very end. This time, she was to wear a blue outfit, and she was helped by Midori, who noticed that the bluenette was having trouble pulling the t-shirt over her head.  
When that was over, Natsuki was able to brush her teeth and comb her hair, but she had a bit of resistance when Mai tried to clean her mouth, which still had crumbs from the cinnamon muffin that the girl had sloppily eaten. Natsuki pushed Mai away, and fell down to the tiled floor, sitting like a puppy. Mai bent down with a rag and touched Natsuki's cheek, but she screamed loud, making all of the other patients who were grooming themselves stop and look. Midori was the first to come over and help, and Arika came too, but she thought she was helping by standing there to observe the situation.  
Midori went behind Natsuki and restrained her so Mai could clean her face. The task was still difficult, however, Natsuki was uncomfortable with a rag covering one of her ways of breathing, so she bit at the rag, making Mai very frustrated. After a while, Mai reached her limit, so she grabbed Natsuki's chin roughly and ignored the screams and tears from the kid. Mai swiped the rag across Natsuki's face until she was clean, then she threw the rag back into the sink and sighed, saying, "That wasn't so bad, was it, Natsuki?"  
Midori helped Natsuki up and wiped the tears away from her face. Natsuki was still shivering, but when they left the bathroom to go to the entertainment center, Midori draped a blue coat around Natsuki's frightened form.  
In the room, a few chairs were moved into a circle, and a couple of women stood in the corner with clipboards.  
Mai smiled at the women and waved to them before making sure everyone was seated. When all was settled, Mai told the women and left, but the others in the room came to sit in the circle of patients. One was tall, and she had tawny hair. She wore a bright green business suit and bootleg jeans. The other had short spiky brown hair and wore a small jump suit. She had glasses, and she studied the patients closely. The took their seats at the head of the circle. The tall one crossed her legs, and the other, her ankles.  
"Hello everybody," the short one began, "We have a new member with us today, and for her sake, I'm Yukino Kikukawa, one of the head doctors here, and the other," she gestured to the other woman, "Is Shizuru Fujino."  
Natsuki didn't pay attention at them, she just curled up into her chair and buried her head in her knees.  
"First we will start off with role call, because one of you, ehem, Arika, was roaming around in the halls last time." Yukino said. "Okay, let's see-"  
"Arika is here!" Arika barked waving her hands in the air.  
"Arika, what did we talk about?" Yukino asked, re-adjusting her glasses.  
"Sorry, Yukino-sensei."  
"Well, let's continue. Um, Midori?"  
"Here."  
"Of course you are, you always are." Yukino chuckled, and scribbled on her clipboard. "Haruka- Where's Haruka?"  
"I'm here." Yukino looked down at her feet to see the girl smiling up at her.  
"Okay, Tomoe is here, Nao is here, and the new one, Natsuki Kuga, is here."  
Shizuru leaned over and whispered something into Yukino's ear. Yukino nodded and then returned her attention to the patients.  
"First of all, I want to say good morning, and second, I want you all to feel free to say anything in this room. Shizuru and I are here to help."  
"Ara, we aren't all paying attention." Shizuru spoke to the crowd, indirectly at Natsuki who was bent over her chair on her stomach trying to grab an ant that scuttled across the floor.  
"Kuga-san?" Shizuru called.  
Natsuki was oblivious, she was focused on the ant and the ant only. Once she was able to get it to crawl on her finger, she returned to a normal seating position and watched the ant crawl about her hand.  
"Kuga-san, Shizuru is talking to you." Yukino informed.  
"Yukino! Can we play that game, the one with the music and the dots?" Asked Haruka, earning a nod.  
The other patients issued a happy cry, and Yukino called them over to herself. They sat at her feet, and all of them were there except Natsuki.  
"I'll get her attention, you begin." Shizuru said.  
Natsuki was unaware that Shizuru had wheeled her chair closer. "Natsuki." Shizuru called, using the girl's given name.  
Natsuki jumped a little, startled, but she didn't even look up, she was distracted, the ant was gone. Shizuru was getting tired of being ignored, so she placed a hand on Natsuki's knee. This got the girl's attention. Natsuki's head snapped up, and she recoiled from Shizuru with a whine.  
While Shizuru was giving Natsuki a second to relax, the patient noticed the odd eye color that beheld the woman. They were red, and red was a color that Natsuki liked. Shizuru smiled at Natsuki when she had assumed that the girl was calm, and Fujino noticed what Natsuki was taking interest in.  
"That is their real color."  
Natsuki leaned in closer to Shizuru, and she looked into those deep crimson eyes. Natsuki wanted that color, she wanted the eyes. Natsuki lifted her hands to Shizuru's face and grabbed at her eyes, but Shizuru moved out of the way.  
"You can look, but no touching."  
Natsuki pouted, and tried to reach for the eyes again, but she leaned a little far out from her chair, making her lose her balance. Natsuki felt herself falling, but before she could hit the ground, she fell into Shizuru's lap.  
Shizuru helped Natsuki up, saying, "Better watch yourself, we wouldn't want you to get hurt."  
Natsuki crawled back in her chair, but Shizuru was standing now, which made Natsuki nervous. Natsuki waved a hand at Shizuru like she was swatting her away. "Natsuki, will you come with me, I want you to play a game with the others. It would be good for you to show some interaction."  
Natsuki frowned and crawled around her chair, so she wasn't looking at Shizuru.  
"Natsuki, I want you to respect me." Shizuru said, making her way around the chair. Natsuki scooted away from Shizuru, but the doctor wasn't ready to give up yet.  
Shizuru sat back down in her chair, and pulled out something that Natsuki longed for. Shizuru placed it in her lap and pretended to ignore Natsuki, but she was watching the girl out of the corner of her eye.  
Natsuki lunged at Shizuru, but before she could grab the object, Shizuru picked it up and held it away from Natsuki.  
"Mine!" Natsuki yelped, leaning over Shizuru's lap.  
"Come to my office with me, and I'll give it back." Shizuru said, but Natsuki thought different, she grabbed Shizuru's wrist and pulled her into the small room that the teenager slept in. Slamming the door, Natsuki pushed Shizuru to the the bed and made her sit down. Falling to the floor, Natsuki held out her hand for the object and looked up at Shizuru with pleading eyes.  
"If I give, this to you, will you talk to me?"  
Natsuki nodded and smiled happily when it was placed in her hands. She pulled the object up to her cheek and rubbed it on her skin. The scent of her mother was all around, and Natsuki placed the rabbit's foot in the bin that held her puppy before crawling onto the bed next to Shizuru.  
As thanks to the doctor, Natsuki leaned down and rubbed her cheek against Shizuru's breasts. Shizuru smiled, knowing that Natsuki meant nothing improper, and placed her hand on Natsuki's head, stroking her hair.  
"I'm going to be your doctor. Yukino and I split the patients, so I have you, Nao, Tomoe, and Arika." Shizuru murmured. "Yukino takes care of Haruka and Midori, plus a bunch of other children from the minor level."  
Natsuki crawled into Shizuru's lap then, and she wrapped her arms around the woman's waist. Shizuru rested her head on Natsuki's and she continued to murmur things that Natsuki may have liked.  
Natsuki moved to sit by herself, but a scream slipped from her lips. Shizuru was startled, and she moved sharply to see if Natsuki was alright. Natsuki was bleeding...from her eyes.


	2. Chapter 2

Natsuki was strapped down onto a table before she could blink. She heard Shizuru's voice rambling rapidly to someone, and she heard the wheels squeaking on the ground. She was pushed into a room, where a blinding light shone on a brown chair. She was lifted up out off of the table and strapped down onto the chair with leather restraints. Natsuki's eyes shot open and she franticly searched the room for Shizuru. She was there, and she was holding a syringe. It was filled with yellowish liquid, and the needle smiled evilly at the girl with the bleeding eyes.

Shizuru took the needle and held Natsuki's head down. Struggling, Natsuki whined and moaned for her mother. The needle came closer to her, and Shizuru smiled warmly at Natsuki before she quickly pushed the needle directly under Natsuki's eye. This was repeated to her other eye, and Natsuki, after the pain from the needle subsided, felt her eyelids droop and close. She was still awake, but the muscles in her eye were unmoving, and she was numbed.

She felt Shizuru's presence near her head, but Natsuki couldn't reach her, for she was restrained. Shizuru took a wet rag and wiped the blood off of Natsuki's cheeks, putting a gauze pad over Nasuki's eyes, soaking up the blood.

"She's got a tumor in her eye, if we can remove it, she shouldn't be bleeding like that anymore. We'll use some medicine to stop the swelling, and then we'll have her take some pills to get her ready to remove the tumors."

Shizuru cracked her knuckles and crossed her arms over her chest, sighing deeply.

"She won't be able to see for a few days, will she?" Shizuru asked, looking down at the young girl strapped to the table.

"She will be blind for at least two days, but someone needs to make sure that she takes her medication." The doctor was tall, and she was emotionless, but she was smart none the less, so Natsuki would be in good care. After all, It was the doctor that lost her limbs in a fight with a gang and she was able to repair herself on her own. She was a cyborg, and she just had to plug her brain into a computer to learn the skills and trades of being a doctor.

Natsuki shook her head violently, so that the gauze pads would fall off of her face and onto the floor. She groaned and fought at the restraints, attempting to break them.

"Mama!" Natsuki yelled, making Shizuru push down on the bluenette's shoulders.

"Natsuki, you need to calm down, I don't want to sedate you completely." Shizuru said calmly.

Miyu took a vaccine full of red liquid from the medical cart and motioned for Shizuru to make sure Natsuki was completely secure. Miyu, after Natsuki was relaxed, quickly pushed the syringe into Natsuki's eyelid pushing the liquid into the infected area. This was repeated, and soon Natsuki's eyes were big and puffy, and she couldn't see a thing.

"Miyu, you said this would stop the swelling?" Shizuru asked, lifting an eyebrow.

"It will stop within the hour. I hope you can manage to take her to Yohko? I'll send her a message to get the medicine prescribed."

"She'll need an escort at all times."

"Take care of her then."

"I have work!"

"Shizuru Fujino, is able to take care, of, Natsuki." Miyu said with many pauses.

Shizuru sighed and undid the straps that held Natsuki captive. "Do you have a wheelchair?"

Miyu went into a small room and returned with a blue wheelchair. She motioned for Natsuki to be put into it, and Shizuru complied. Lifting Natsuki out of the leathered chair, she held the girl around the waist and put Natsuki into the wheelchair. Trying to get up, the bluenette screeched when Shizuru used a belt to strap Natsuki's backside into the chair.

Natsuki flailed her limbs around, reaching for Shizuru. She whined in agony as she began to feel the puffy-ness of her eyes. The puss squeezed out of the closed eyelids and Natsuki violently rubbed her sleeve over the irritated skin.

Shizuru quickly grabbed Natsuki's arms and pulled them down to the armrests on the wheelchair, and she had to restrain Natsuki again. Shizuru wiped the sweat from her forehead and took Natsuki's knees.

"You have to calm down. Natsuki, if you keep flailing you'll hurt yourself."

"If I may be of help, this may restrain her and make her more comfortable."

Shizuru looked to Miyu who was holding a pair of glasses that were designed to keep one from rubbing at the eyes. Taking the object, Shizuru strapped it around Natsuki's eyes and took the key to lock the object down. Then, she unhooked Natsuki's arms from the chair. Immediately, Natsuki yanked at the glasses, but they would not budge at all. Screaming, Natsuki reached out and grabbed for whatever she could get her hands on, in this case, she grabbed Shizuru.

"Off." Natsuki whispered, pulling herself closer to Shizuru's forehead.

Bending down, Shizuru took Natsuki's cheeks and caressed them gently. "You'll have them off in a few days, but you'll have to be good, okay?"

"Mama, mama..." natsuki murmured, allowing her arms to fall onto her knees.

Shizuru took the handlebars of the chair and waved to Miyu before pushing Natsuki out of the room.

"Natsuki, do you want to go outside?" Shizuru asked, noticing that the other patients from her wing of the institution were outside.

"We are in the basement, right?"

"Yes, we are. There's a door coming up, if you want to go outside, I'll take you out there with the other kids."

A ball was being thrown around outdoors, and Shizuru waved to Mai who saw her through the window. Midori saw that Natsuki was in the wheelchair, and she was curious, so she ran to the door and opened it for the doctor and Natsuki.

"Nice day out, isn't it?" Midori asked letting the door close after all of them were on the sidewalk that bordered the grass.

Natsuki was smiling, and she jumped up and down in her chair, pushing on the belt in excitement. Throwing her head back, the girl was able to gather all of the scents of the outdoors into her comfort.

"Outside! Outside!" Natsuki said loudly, earning a pat on the head from Shizuru.

"Do you like it, Natsuki?" Midori asked, unbuckling the belt that held Natsuki without Shizuru's permission.

Sometimes Midori thought of herself as a doctor, but she didn't get in trouble for it anymore. Shizuru didn't mind, but she motioned for midori to step back, seeing as Natsuki was starting to jump more violently.

"Natsuki, are you alright?"

"I want to play!" Natsuki answered, grabbing Shizuru's arms for support as she attempted to stand up.

Unfortunately, Natsuki tripped over the wheel chair, but she fell right down into Shizuru's strong arms.

"I fell." Natsuki giggled, slipping out of Shizuru's arms and onto the sidewalk. Franticly, Natsuki felt around until she caught the grass. She flung herself into it and rolled onto her back, feeling the sun beat down on her. "I can't see, 'Zuru."

"'Zuru? I've got a nickname now." Shizuru said, pushing the wheelchair to the side of the building. "Ara, Natsuki is very happy to be outside."

"I can't see."

"I know, but you'll see soon."

"Shizuru-chan!"

Looking up, Shizuru saw a turquoise haired girl holding a black spider stuffed animal in her hand.

"Tomoe, how are you?" Shizuru smiled, greeting the girl with a warm hug.

"I missed you! I wanted to talk to you this morning but you were talking with her," she looked to Natsuki, "and I didn't want to interrupt."

Shizuru picked Tomoe up to hold her, and happily, the girl wrapped her arms around the doctor's neck.

"I thank you for being so polite. I can talk to you now if you'd like, Midori can watch Natsuki."  
Midori nodded, and went to sit next to Natsuki who was rolling on the ground like a puppy. Shizuru took this opportunity to take Tomoe to the bench next to the blacktop where everyone else was playing with Yukino and Mai. Sitting down, Shizuru cradled Tomoe like a baby.

"What would you like to talk about, hm?" Shizuru invited, taking Tomoe's spider and placing it on the girl's stomach.

Tomoe purred and hid her face in Shizuru's breast to escape the sun. Tomoe was a small girl, and she was Arika's age. She was a soft child, considering what had happened to her. She was raped, by a man who killed her mother and kidnapped her father. She was terrified of men nowadays, and she loved Shizuru so much that it hurt. She tried to not be so OCD about the doctor, but Shizuru had told her that she was to be whatever she wanted in the mental institution. She was happier in the asylum, and she had nowhere to go. Her aunt offered to take care of her, but the government deemed her unsafe for Tomoe. Miss Marguerite was about forty-six years old, and she lived in a small neighborhood, but she wasn't wealthy enough to take care of Tomoe. Her aunt was also having some troubles on her own, she was fighting cancer with therapy. Another outlet could be Tomoe's grandparents, but they were much to poor without medical expenses to take care of the child, so they only came to visit, but they visited a lot.

"I wanted to ask if we could have another fun night." Tomoe murmured, looking up into Shizuru's crimson red eyes.

"A fun-night? Well, we would have to see about that." Shizuru said.

A fun-night was, well, a fun night! They were always on Friday, and the room would be all decorated with party items and colorful lights, a pizza would be ordered, and the patients would be able to just relax and have fun. Music would be played, and then a movie would be put in after dinner. Each night they would have a theme, but the universal motif would be Disney. So, one night would be Pixar, one would be Disney Princesses, and maybe one would be Disney most exciting part of the night would be that the patients didn't have to go into their rooms for the night, they would be able to have a "sleepover" with each other. The fun-nights included the staff too, so that Shizuru and Yukino would have to participate in the whole thing as well.

Tomoe blushed and held Shizuru tighter, saying, "We all would like to have one..."

"Well I don't see why we couldn't have one, but, you will all have to do a good job when you take the Weekly Evaluation Test." Shizuru said.

The W. E. T. was a test to see how the patients were doing at the asylum. The tests would be submitted to a board of executives who would send out emails and update's to the parents of the patients, and they would also give the doctor's some feedback and sometimes even a raise if they were doing a good job.

"But, that takes forever!"

"Well, honey, it has to be taken, so why not have something fun to look forward to at the end?"

"I guess you're right..."

Tomoe's face drooped, and she was quickly pulled back into Shizuru's grasp.

"Come now! Tomoe, you always do a good job on the test!" Shizuru cheered, making Tomoe giggle in happiness.

"Whose the new girl?" Tomoe asked, changing the mood.

"Her name is Natsuki Kuga."

"What's she like?"

Shizuru sighed and set Tomoe down in the grass, placing the black spider on her head.

"She's abrupt, and she needs some friends. You will be her friend for me, ne?"

Tomoe nodded with hesitancy. "Has she been diagnosed yet?"  
"Not yet, I plan to do that after dinner."

Shizuru looked up to see that Midori had gotten Natsuki to get off the ground. They were now on the blacktop, and they were sitting on the ground rolling a blue basketball back and forth to each other. Arika was hanging over them, curious as always. In the distance, Haruka and Yukino were playing catch with each other. Nao was sitting in the grass with her head pressed against the fence that enclosed the patients into the asylum. Mai was sitting next to her, but they weren't talking, they were just observing what was around them.

"Tomoe, how about you go and play with Natsuki, hm? You can get to know each other."

"But...what about you?"

"I've got to go get Natsuki's medicine, but I'll come back, okay?"

"Yes, Shizuru-chan."

...  
"Natsuki's mother was called, she's coming in today to see if Natsuki is alright."

"But her mother dropped her off only yesterday!"

"Shizuru, her eyes were bleeding, it is our duty to notify the parents."

Shizuru shook her head, saying, "I know, but this will be hard for Natsuki's health."

"Oh, anyway, I need to have you talk with the mother, seeing as you were the one with Natsuki the entire time."

"Ugh, alright. Saeko Kuga?"

"Yes, that's her name."

"Natsuki, you have a visitor."

It was Shizuru's voice from outside of the bluenette's bedroom. Natsuki sat up from the floor and put her puppy back in the toy bin. When the door opened, Natsuki crawled up onto the bed. Shizuru walked in and sat on a chair she had brought in earlier that day, but the other woman sat on the bed and pulled Natsuki into her grasp. The door was shut, and Natsuki smelled familiar scents from the woman holding her.

"Mama!" Natsuki exclaimed, wrapping her arms tightly around the woman. "'Zuru! 'Zuru this is mama!"

Shizuru smiled and watched the two hug each other. She gave them a moment, before she started speaking. "I'm sure you are aware of the situation, Mrs. Kuga?"

"Yes, I heard, is this contraption," she touched the glasses on her daughter, "stopping her from making it worse?"

"It is, and in a few days we will take it off, then we will remove the tumor."

"Mama!"

"Yes, Natsuki?"

"Can we go home now?"

Silence. Natsuki waited in anticipation for the answer, but no one answered her. The look on Saeko's face became saddened.

"Natsuki, we'll go home when you're better, okay?"

"I want mama now." Natsuki murmured.

"Can she see, Shizuru-san?"

"Not at the moment, in a few minutes she should be able too."

Saeko pulled Natsuki into her lap. "I've got something that may help you. She is your patient, right?"

"Yes, she is my patient."

Saeko reached into her coat pocket and pulled out a bag of little candies. "She loves these. If she's ever bad, just give her one."

"I will, Saeko-san." Shizuru took the bag and clipped it to her clipboard that held Natsuki's information.

Natsuki tried to cry, but her eyes were shut so hard it was impossible. She didn't know that her mother would come and see her again, and she figured that she was going to be left here alone. Natsuki began to moan in pain, and she fell out of her mother's lap and onto the floor.

Saeko gasped and went to tend to her daughter, but Shizuru held up a hand to stop her, saying, "She is dealing with the pain in her own way, if you coddle her, she will never learn."

Shizuru turned to look at Natsuki who crawled into a fetal position, whining deeply.

"I should go, if there's nothing more I can learn from you, but, do you know the names of the medication she will be taking?" Saeko asked, gathering her things.

"Ah, yes. She will be taking morphine, and chemotherapy."

"Alright then, I'll come see her in a few days, please, take good care of my Natsuki, you can't even begin to imagine how hard it was to send her here."

"I understand, Mrs. Kuga. I will take good care of her."  
...

Natsuki had to be locked in her room until dinner. Right after her mother left she became very frantic. She tried to climb out of the window, she punched and kicked at the door, and she nearly harmed Shizuru in the process. The media center had to be shut down, and the other patients were moved into the cafeteria for the rest of the day because of Natsuki's screaming.

Shizuru had gotten Natsuki's medicine, but she let the girl try to calm down before she was to give Natsuki the medicine. After a long hour, Natsuki had calmed herself and the screaming was now just little whimpers. The rabbit's foot and the little puppy animal were on the bed, and Natsuki held them close to herself in attempt to feel her mother's presence.

Eventually, it was about time for dinner, but instead of going right to the cafeteria, Shizuru went to get Natsuki. She would always eat dinner with her patients, but during breakfast and lunch she was always busy with work. She knocked before unlocking Natsuki's room, and when she opened the door, Natsuki was on her bed, huddled in the corner.

"Natsuki, do you feel better?" Shizuru asked, sitting down on the bed.

Natsuki looked up to her doctor, nodded, and turned away. She could see clearly now, for the medicine that Miyu gave her was finally working. Her cheeks were a bit puffy from screaming, and her hair was messed up from rolling around on the floor.

"Dinner is ready, if you want it." Shizuru offered.

Natsuki was dormant.

"You want to eat?"

"Mama..."

Shizuru sighed and scooted closer to Natsuki. She wrapped her arm around Natsuki's waist and pulled her into a hug. "You're mama will come see you soon. I promise. I also made a promise to her that I would take care of you, and, I can only take care of you if you let me."

"Mama wants you too?"

"Yes, she does."

"Okay."

...

"I wanna sit with you!"

"I wanna sit with her!"

Shizuru set her tray on the table and sat down next to Yukino. Arika and Tomoe were pushing at each other, fighting over who got to sit by Shizuru.

"Tomoe, you sat next to me yesterday, how about you give Arika a turn?"

Tomoe frowned, but nodded, moving out of the way for Arika to slam her tray on the counter and sit down. She grabbed Shizuru's arm rather abruptly and nuzzled her cheek on the blonde's shoulder.  
Yukino was busy speaking with Haruka, and Midori was with Mai, playing chess while they waited for their food. Nao was sitting at the end of the table, while Natsuki was on her knees at the food window.  
She as amazed at the cooks, seeing that they would flip pizza in the air and sizzle burgers on the grill. Shizuru had ordered her a chicken wrap, and Natsuki was waiting for it at the moment.

"Here you go, kiddo." said a man dressed in white.

He handed her the plate, and Natsuki rested her chin on the counter.

"Do you need anything else?"

Natsuki nodded, saying, "Thank you."

She took the plate and began to scoot across the floor on her knees. When she was close enough to touch her doctor, she stood and cocked her head to the right, seeing as there wasn't any room for her. Shizuru noticed this, and prepared for another fight, but she was completely shocked when the bluenette sat on the floor, nearly under the table, and rubbed her cheek on Shizuru's thigh. There, Natsuki began to eat.

Shizuru smiled warmly, and continued to sip her tea, but a tap on her knee interrupted her. She looked down to see Natsuki holding a fork up to her. Shizuru chuckled and said, "I don't need that, if you're done with it, go put it in the water bin."  
Natsuki fidgeted and waved the fork around, extending her hand even closer to Shizuru. "I want 'Zuru to have it."

"Oh," Shizuru said, smiling weakly, taking the fork from Natsuki. "Thank you."

Natsuki smiled and circled her arms around Shizuru's leg, squeezing the doctor lovingly. Shizuru turned back to her tea and noticed that Tomoe was looking like she was going to explode.

"Tomoe?" Shizuru called, holding out her hand for the young girl.

Tomoe took it, surprised when Shizuru pulled her into her lap. Shizuru kissed Tomoe's forehead and brushed her thumb over the girl's cheek. Natsuki was soon in the middle of the confrontation. She was smiling, and she decided to poke her head up through Tomoe's and Shizuru's legs.

"Natsuki, that's not very appropriate." Shizuru informed, lifting an eyebrow at the girl.

Tomoe buried her head in the crook of Shizuru's neck. She felt uncomfortable but she didn't want to leave Shizuru's embrace. Natsuki was being rather intruding: she was sniffing Tomoe's inner thigh, moving up to the girl's belly button where the bluenette decided that she would poke Tomoe in the little place where she was once connected to her mother.

Tomoe yelped at the sudden touch, and whacked Natsuki upside the face. She then twisted and jerked out of Shizuru's lap to run over to Mai and Midori who were too busy to notice what was going on. The fray happened quickly, and Shizuru was a bit stunned from the situation until she lost the feeling of Natsuki's presence and heard stifling cries from under the table.

"What is going on?" Yukino interjected, turning away from a confused Haruka.

Shizuru ignored Yukino to look under the table at the girl curled in a ball. Natsuki was crying, and the slap from Tomoe had left a large red mark all the way up to the glasses that held Natsuki's eyes captive. Shizuru noticed quickly that the tears would soon flood Natsuki's eyes. Swiftly, Shizuru had pulled Natsuki out from under the table and reached into her pocket for the key to Natsuki's glasses, unlocking them. Shizuru grabbed the back of the contraption and whipped it off of the crying girl. Natsuki's skin was red from the pressure of the glasses, but her eyes seemed better. Tears ran over the child's cheeks, and Shizuru pulled Natsuki into a deep hug.

"Natsuki, you can't do that to other people." Shizuru said reassuringly.

Natsuki latched onto Shizuru's business coat and cried pools of liquid over her doctor's lap.

"It hurts, it hurts!" Natsuki shouted, rubbing the hurt area on Shizuru's stomach.

"I know, I know. Here, let's get you cleaned up okay?" Shizuru took a clean napkin from the center of the table and cleared the tears away from Natsuki bruised face.

"I think it's time for bed, Natsuki. Do you want me to tuck you in?"

Nodding, Natsuki clinged to Shizuru as the woman stood. Together, they walked back through the hallway and into the patient's area. Reaching into her pocket, Shizuru still had the pills that Natsuki was to take, and she had to give them to the girl before she was asleep.

Gently, Shizuru pulled Natsuki into her room and shut the door. Sitting on the bed with the distressed girl, Shizuru pulled out the pills and leaned over to set them on the sink next to the metal door. She returned to Natsuki, who was now breathing hard but stopped crying.

"Can you do something for me?"

Natsuki nodded.

"You see those little capsules on your sink? Will you take them for me?"

Natsuki crawled over to the area to investigate. Picking one of the pills up with her thumb and forefinger, Natsuki flicked it with her tongue and hissed in disgust. She put the pill back and curled back up to Shizuru who sighed deeply.

"Natsuki, I'll give you a treat if you eat them?"

"Huh?"

Shizuru reached into her other pocket and pulled out the baggie full of treats that Mrs. Kuga had given her. She enjoyed the wide-eyed look on Natsuki's face as the treats were jostled in the plastic before her.

Quickly, Natsuki grabbed the pills and shoved them into her mouth, not realizing that she needed water. Natsuki swallowed the pills whole, choked a little, and sat on the floor like a dog.

"Next time, drink some water first." Shizuru ordered, handing a pink square of candy to Natsuki.  
Natsuki lapped it up out of Shizuru's hand and jumped on the bed, sucking on it to gather the flavor.

Shizuru sealed the bag back up and slipped it back into her pocket, satisfied at her new patient. She stood which alarmed Natsuki, but she only took the blanket that Natsuki had disregarded off of the floor and draped it over the girl.

"Good night, Natsuki." Shizuru stated, turning to the door.

Stopped by a whimper from Natsuki, Shizuru turned back around to see the girl with open arms, whining.

"I have to go to sleep too, you know."

Shizuru returned back to the bed where she pulled Natsuki into a cradled embrace. She began to rock the girl back and forth like a newly made mother would. Natsuki purred and closed her eyes. She felt safe in Shizuru's arms, and surprisingly, the thoughts of Saeko Kuga vanished from her memory for once.

After about a quarter of an hour, Shizuru was sure that Natsuki was asleep, so she gently lay Natsuki back onto the bed and covered her once more. She also reached into the bin and pulled out the stuffed dog, placing it in the crook of Natsuki's neck. Taking one last look at the bluenette, Shizuru turned out the light and left the room, making sure to lock the door behind her.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3  
Tomoe sat in Shizuru's office on the floor. She was very quiet, and the game "pick up sticks" was sprawled out in front of her. She observed the little multi-colored pieces of wood before her, and she tried to find one that she could pick out of the pile with ease.

Shizuru had allowed the young girl to sit in her office as long as she was quiet. Now that Tomoe was nice and settled, Shizuru pulled out her laptop and began to type Natsuki's observation notes. Now, the bluenette was sleeping in her room. It was an hour before the meeting, and the patients had been let out of their rooms. Shizuru had made sure that Natsuki was fed, but afterwards, the girl crawled into her bed and fell asleep.

Her room was furnished, and the room was very large. A desk sat in front of windows that were covered with blinds. The mahogany color of the desk fit well with the dark colored carpet and leather chairs. Shizuru had bought two comfortable chairs for people who would come in and converse with her patients or their relatives. On the two sides of the room, two bookcases were crafted with perfect detail, and both were stocked with books.

Shizuru rolled her chair back and reached into a drawer to grab a pen. She picked it up and grabbed her notepad, writing down the details of Natsuki's upcoming operation.

Tomoe had gotten bored with the game, and she crawled over to one of the chairs in front of Shizuru's desk. Hopping up into the chair, settling down to close her eyes.

"Shizuru-sensei..." Tomoe whispered.

"Hm?" Shizuru replied, looking up from her work.

"Can we go outside today?"

Shizuru sighed and logged out of her laptop, returning it to the pull-out compartment under the top of her desk. She stood up and pushed her chair in, going to sit by Tomoe in the other chair.

"I'll take my group outside for sure, but we'll have the meeting at the picnic table, then we can play." Shizuru answered, grasping the quivering hand that was pushed toward her.

"You are very cold, do you feel unwell?" Shizuru asked, feeling Tomoe's forehead.

Tomoe shook her head, shaking her hair. "I'm just a little cold."

"Alright then, I'm glad you feel fine, but if it turns otherwise, I want you to tell me, okay?"

Nodding, Tomoe followed Shizuru as she stood up from the chair and walked out of the door, shutting it behind her and Tomoe. Shizuru held out her hand for Tomoe, and the young girl slipped her own into her doctor's. Together, they made their way out of the office section of the building and took the stairs back to the patient's quarters. In the entertainment room, sat Midori, Nao and Arika on the couch, and Haruka was off to the side with Yukino and Mai, playing a game.

Natsuki was still in her room, and after Shizuru made sure that Tomoe was settled with the group, the doctor still had to check on Natsuki. Making her way down the hall, Shizuru noticed that Natsuki's door was wide open, and the sun shining through the window shone out into the metal hallway. Seeing a little trail of Cheerios lined out of Natsuki's room, it appeared that the bluenette was still hungry.

"Natsuki?" Shizuru called, knocking on the the wall to alert the girl that she was there.

Natsuki was under her bed with her stuffed puppy, and the rabbit's foot was wrapped around her finger. Shizuru could only see that Natsuki's feet were poking out from under the mattress. Natsuki's bed cover was tied to the bars on the window and also to the faucet of the white sink. The remainder of the covers left the rest of the room concealed in a small darkness. The chair that Shizuru had left in the room was turned over on it's side, and little pictures of animals and stick people now resided on it.

Bending down, Shizuru crawled under the blanket to get into the new area that her patient had created. She sat down on the bed, and leaned over to look under the bed.

Surprisingly, Natsuki rapidly hurled herself across the room slamming her door shut. Then, she raced under the blanket and pulled Shizuru down on the bed. Stunned, Shizuru blinked twice and waited for Natsuki to allow her to get up. Soon, Natsuki grabbed the pillows off of her bed and placed them in a line across the room. She lay down before the feather filled bags and hid her face in her hands.

"Natsuki?"

"Shh!" Hissed Natsuki, crawling back up to the bed, pushing Shizuru against the wall.

Natsuki looked at the ceiling warily, and her ears twitched.

"What's going-"

"Quiet! Do you want them to hear you!" Natsuki whispered angrily.

Realizing that she had to whisper, Shizuru continued, "What's going on?"

Natsuki looked at the doctor with fire in her eyes. She pulled out a sharpie marker from under the bed and slashed a dark line over Shizuru's face. Frowning, Shizuru was about to say something when Natsuki did the same to herself, only it was on a different side of her face.

"The bad people, they're going to come get us. I left a trail of coins to this fort we're in. When they come in, I'll attack and we can get the amulet back!" Natsuki muttered, crawling into Shizuru's lap.

"Um-"

"Duck! They're firing at the fort! Boom, boom, boom!" Natsuki barked, pulling Shizuru down. "Return fire!" Natsuki made her hands into a gun shape. Leaning over the window, she began to "shoot", "Pew, pew, pew, pew! Bang!" Soon the "firing" subsided and Natsuki reached under her bed, pulling out...air.

"Cover your ears!" Natsuki waled to Shizuru. Natsuki made a throwing motion, and kneeled down, covering her ears. "BAM!"

After a while of silence, Natsuki peeked over the window sill. "I think I got em'! We won!"

"Uh-"

"Oh! The amulet!" Looking to her side, Natsuki picked up the "amulet" and set the air into Shizuru's lap.

"It must have bounced in here after I threw the grenade! We won! We won!"

'Role play.' Shizuru thought to herself. Natsuki was playing with her like she was her sister. Shizuru pulled Natsuki closer and ran her hand through the blue hair.

"Did you see? 'Zuru?" Natsuki began, patting Shizuru's chest. "I got the... Where's the amulet?"

"Hn?"

Natsuki frantically searched around the room, but when she couldn't find it, she reached into her pocket and pulled out a piece of clay in the shape of a star. Apparently, Natsuki had taken mud from the outdoors.

"I lost it, but here." Natsuki placed the star in Shizuru's hands with a smile.

"Thank you, Natsuki." Shizuru said out of gratitude. "Hey, lunch is ready for us in a few minutes. Would you like to sit by me? I have gotten my work done for today, so I can eat lunch and dinner with you."

"I want to sit by 'Zuru." Natsuki replied, pulling her bed sheet downward and back onto the bed.

"First we have to get these sharpie marks off of our faces."

Natsuki had missed breakfast because she was still sleeping, so she was very hungry. Shizuru was the first in the cafeteria, with Natsuki following behind her. The lunch people were already setting out a brunch for the inhabitants of this section of the mental hospital. Natsuki was smelling the food, but she wanted to stay with Shizuru, even though she was starving.

Shizuru took her time in walking, seeing what Natsuki's reaction would be. When they reached the first table in the buffet, Shizuru took a foam cup from the top of the piled and set it under a tea dispenser. Pressing a button on the machine, Shizuru watched Natsuki's eyes widen in fascination. When Shizuru left that table, Natsuki cautiously approached the machine and pressed the button, watching the tea pour out into the bowl under the black dispenser.

"Natsuki? Come here please." Shizuru called, seeing the other patients followed by Yukino walk into the room.

Natsuki hopped over to her doctor and clinged to her arm gently making sure that she wouldn't accidentally make Shizuru spill her tea. Shizuru looked down at her and smiled, moving her arm around the girl's waist.

"How old is 'Zuru?" Natsuki muttered, leaning her head on the woman's shoulder as they walked to the next table that held various breads and jellies.

"I'm almost twenty." answered Shizuru, handing a styrofoam plate to her patient.

"Why is 'Zuru so... so successful?"

"Why do you ask?"

"You are young and pr-pofetonal..."

"Professional, you mean?"

"Yes, Natsuki is bad at prunoncing things."

"Pronouncing, Natsuki-chan."

"Oh..."

Shizuru handed Natsuki one of the pre-made fruit bowls, amused when the girl's nose crinkled up in disgust. Still, Natsuki took it because Shizuru gave it to her.

"In answer to you question, dear, I was always smart. I skipped kindergarden for tests of high intelligence, and my parents told me that I need to study very hard to be successful. I took the meaning of the statement very literally, so I spent all of my afternoons and weekends on the computer learning about topics that wouldn't seem to matter to a child as young as I would. When I was in fifth grade, I heard my teacher speaking with another parent about human phsycology. I wondered what it was, so I looked it up on the computer and studied it. It was very interesting, and as I grew older, I figured out my job. I started off as a school counselor when I was sixteen, seeing as I had skipped a few grades. The administration was impressed with my work, so they offered me a job at the hospital as a nurse. My job there was very much like Mai's job here. Soon, I excelled over my co-workers and got a raise and a promotion." Shizuru paused to catch her breath. "When I was eighteen, I was accepted into Garderobe University, but they couldn't teach me anything; I practically took the lessons while I was young. So, the Board of Administrators sent me here, where I quickly became Yukino's assistant, but she promoted me to a full-time doctor."

"Yukino is older than you? She is so small." Natsuki replied, grabbing a meat and cheese sandwich from the table.

"Yukino was actually a member of the patients a while back. When she had turned her life around they noticed that she was a good edition to the staff, so they made her a doctor. She used to be so shy, but everyone here is encouraged to open themselves up."

Shizuru was set with her tea, but Natsuki had attempted to grab every single cookie on the desert tray, but Shizuru grabbed her wrist.

"Natsuki, only two."

"But-"

"No buts, you heard me. Two."

Natsuki hissed at Shizuru and frowned angrily. She took two of the biggest cookies and latched back onto Shizuru, who led them to the staff table. Shizuru sat down in her original spot, but Natsuki tried to sit on the floor again. Waving her finger at Natsuki, Shizuru looked to the seat next to her, and Natsuki crawled up into it.

"The floor is dirty, Natsuki."

"So is she." A voice said from behind the two of them. Shizuru turned to see Tomoe with her arms crossed over her chest.

Tomoe was still in her outfit from the day before, and she was steaming mad.  
"Tomoe, apologize to Natsuki." Shizuru ordered, turning to the girl.

Tomoe shook her head and glared at Natsuki, making the bluenette curl in a little ball. Shizuru saw this, and crossed her leg over the other, folding her hands in her lap.

"Tomoe Marguerite, apologize to Natsuki." Shizuru commanded sternly, raising her voice.

Seeing that Tomoe was ignoring her, Shizuru turned back around to look at Natsuki. The teen was red in the face, and she looked as if she was about to cry. Shizuru felt bad for her. She was the new girl, and it was always hard to be in a new place, with new people... and to top it all off, to be disliked by someone. Shizuru smiled, and reached under Natsuki's cheek, pulling her face up.

"Perk up, dear. Eat. We are going to need you to be strong for today." Shizuru informed. "Today we have the weekly activity, and I'm going to talk with Yukino about having you girls play a game outside."  
Natsuki ignored Shizuru. She was more interested in seeing if Tomoe was still looking at her. Sure enough, she was. Quickly Natsuki twisted around to look at her plate.

"Who are you looking at you retard!" Tomoe shouted.

Suddenly, Shizuru stood up and roughly grabbed Tomoe's arm.

"My office. Now!" Shizuru commanded, letting the girl go.

Shizuru watched Tomoe run away in the direction of her office, but she had to take care of Natsuki, who was crying hard, trying to choke back tears. Shizuru took Natsuki's hand and pulled the teen up, embracing the bluenette in a hug. Nothing was held back then. Natsuki sobbed and sobbed, and sobbed.  
Yukino came running over, but before she could speak, Shizuru held up a finger to indicate that she would be a few minutes. Taking Natsuki, Shizuru walked off to her office.

She opened the door for Natsuki, but when the girl saw Tomoe, the girl yipped and scuttled behind Shizuru, who shut the door behind the two. She moved over to her desk and sat down in her chair, pulling out a yellow note pad and a blue pen. Shizuru realized that Natsuki was still an inch away from her, so she motioned for the girl to sit in the chair next to Tomoe.

Natsuki crawled over to the chair and sat down, realizing it was very comfortable. She curled into a ball on the chair, and made sure that Tomoe was out of her sight range.

"Tomoe, apologize to Natsuki, now."

"Sorry..."

Natsuki turned to look at Tomoe, who wasn't looking in her direction.

"Why don't we use that word?" Shizuru asked, resting her hands on her desk.

"She called me a retard!" Shouted Natsuki, nearly falling out of her chair with her outburst.

"Natsuki, hush. I know, I was there with you." Shizuru said calmly, but even a fool could see that she was annoyed. "Tomoe, what do you have against Natsuki?"

Tomoe grunted and looked indirectly at Shizuru, muttering, "She will take you from me."

"That doesn't mean you need to call her a name."

Natsuki's hand shot up like she was a student in school.

"Yes, Natsuki?" Shizuru asked, turning to the girl.

"You're bleeding."

"No, Natsuki, I'm not."

"Then why are your eyes red?"

"I'm not sure, dear one. They are unique."

Natsuki rocked back and forth and hummed a quiet tune under her breath.

"Tomoe, you are to be in here for an hour. You will sit in that chair and endure Natsuki's precense." Shizuru said, revealing her punishment to Tomoe. "Natsuki, feel free to look at the books and play the games on the bottom shelf."

Natsuki smiled and crawled out of the chair and over to the bookcase. She observed the wide variety, but she saw a brightly colored one and ripped it out of the storage. She teared through the book, crumpling up the pages.

"Natsuki?" Shizuru called, pulling her laptop out of the desk.

Natsuki turned to look at her doctor.

"Don't destroy my books, alright?"

Natsuki nodded and put the book back on the shelf. She made her way over to the desk, and she rested her chin on the top of the surface. Shizuru was typing on her computer, and Natsuki began to crawl over the top of the desk.

"Natsuki, get down!" Shizuru said, watching Natsuki flip herself over the table.

Natsuki grabbed Shizuru's knees and pulled herself up into the woman's lap. She hung her arms over the sides of the chair and she rested her head in the crook of Shizuru's neck. Shizuru paid no mind, she just kept typing like Natsuki wasn't there. She looked over at Tomoe, who was twiddling her thumbs, refusing to look at the girl who made her jealous.

"Natsuki, are you tired?" Shizuru broke the silence.

Natsuki manuevered her head so that she was resting on Shizuru's chest. Looking up at the dirty blonde, Natsuki nodded, returning her position back into the crook of Shizuru's neck.

"Shizuru-sensei..."

"What, Tomoe?" Shizuru replied, rather annoyed.

"Can I leave?"

"Not for another fifty-three minutes."

"But... fine..."

Natsuki turned so that she was looking at Shizuru's computer. It was opened with a word document, and Natsuki pressed her hand on the screen.

"I want to go outside." Natsuki muttered, making Tomoe's eyes widen.

That was what she wanted, and she was actually surprised when Natsuki said that.

"Natsuki, let me see your face." Shizuru said, ignoring the girl.

Shizuru took Natsuki's cheek and pulled her face so she was looking at the bluenette. Her eyes were looking better, and Miyu had told her to check. Soon, Natsuki's operation would fall upon the group.

"Bah..." Natsuki mumbled, shaking her head and rocking back and forth.

Shizuru took Natsuki's hand and pushed her head back onto her shoulder. She whispered for Natsuki to sleep, and the girl closed her eyes and drifted into sleep.

The sun was out today, and the patients were just about done with their meeting with Yukino and Shizuru. Natsuki was sitting in the grass next to Nao and Arika. Arika didn't notice this, but Natsuki was playing with her two braids. Nao was pulling up the grass from the yard, and the other girls were doing their own thing.

Haruka was busy in the ball shed, getting a kickball for Yukino. Yukino and Shizuru both decided that the group would play kickball instead of baseball. Midori was out on the blacktop setting up the bases for the game, and Tomoe was chalking the out-of-bounds lines.  
Shizuru and Yukino were disscussing who would be on whose team, and it was a challenging thing, until Mai came up, slammed her hand down on the picnic table and yelled out who was to go where.

"Alright then..." Shizuru said, quietly.

She turned to the two three girls who were still on the grass doing nothing, and she motioned for them to get up. Obeying the silent command, Arika, Natsuki, and Nao stood up and followed after Yukino who was explaining the rules to the other girls.

Natsuki, however, turned back to look at Shizuru, who was happily taking her time in walking over to the court. Walking over to Shizuru, Natsuki grabbed onto the doctor's arm. Shizuru welcomed her warmly, and wrapped an arm around the bluenette's slender waist. Natsuki purred quietly, and blushed a little.

"Ara, Natsuki, your face is pink." Shizuru giggled, tucking some of her long hair behind her ear.

Natsuki pouted and looked away, crossing her arms over her chest. Shizuru chuckled and walked closer to the blacktop a little faster, seeing as Yukino was dividing up the teams, with Mai's supervision of course.

"Natsuki, you are with Midori and her team, alright?"

Natsuki looked at Shizuru for permission and was surprised when the doctor pushed her towards the game in the form of a nudge. She ran to Midori, and the orange-haired girl welcomed her with a one armed hug.

"Yukino, why don't you invite some of your other patients you take care of?" Shizuru offered, noticing that the game wouldn't have enough people.

"Good idea, I'll invite them now."

In a few minutes, more people were outside, they looked very young, but they all seemed to be excited to be down on the blacktop.

"Thank you for bringing them down for me, Yukariko-san." Yukino said to the short, brown-haired woman.

"No problem, I'm just going to watch though, eheh." The woman muttered.

Yukino smiled at her, and then turned back to the players, ready to issue them onto teams.

"Okay everyone, let's get started." Yukino began, "Team one, your captain will be Mai Tokiha, she is the girl in the blue outfit and the short, bright colored hair. See, she's waving her hand." Mai was over in one corner of the blacktop, ready to receive her team. "If I call you name, please go over to Mai. Let's see... Midori, Nao, Natsuki, Chie, Miya, and Shiho are on Mai's team. Team two, your captain is Fumi Himeno, she has pink hair, and she is waiting for you over in the opposite corner. The people that will go to her team are Tomoe, Haruka, Aoi, Arika, Nagi, and Takeda."

The people dispersed to their teams, and they all huddled, ready to begin the game. Shizuru and Yukino along with Yukariko sat on the picnic table to watch, seeing as Mai was educated enough to start off a game, just like most people were.

"Remember, girls, that the other team has two boys, so they may be overly aggressive." Mai began to explain. "That means that you, Midori and Nao, can't hit them if they hurt you or your teammates. I heard that this went very bad the last time we allowed the boys to play."

"Got it!" Midori said, crossing her fingers behind her back.

"Chie," Mai said, "Don't flirt with Aoi during the game, that's unfair."

"Fine..."

"Miya, honey, don't worry about Tomoe, if she does anything to you, tell me."

"Okay, Mai." The girl said shyly.

"Shiho, you should be fine, but you," Mai continued, turning to Natsuki, "If this is too much for you, please tell me. Okay?"

Natsuki shook her head and replied, "I will do my best."

"That's the spirit, alright. Let's begin." Mai said, turning to the court.

Before the game started, Natsuki raced over to Shizuru and grabbed her shoulders, saying, "You are gonna watch, right? Right?"

"Natsuki, I will watch, but you have to go and participate."

"Okay!" Natsuki barked, turning back to the group of players that were getting set up on the court.  
Natsuki and her team were put as the outfield, and she herself was put in the back too catch the long kicks. She was put back there out of pre-caution; Mai thought that the other team couldn't kick that far so Natsuki probably wouldn't get hit in the face.

The kicking line started with Nagi, and ended with Aoi.

When Mai blew the whistle, all hell broke lose (in an orderly fashion). Midori rolled the ball toward Nagi, and he wound up fast and hard. When his foot came in contact with the ball, the rubber sphere flew into the air with a clean-cut spiral. Being one of the more athletic girls of the team, Chie, who was on second base ran toward the ball, jumped up, caught the ball with one hand and landed perfectly on the ground.

"One out so far!" Mai said while everyone got set up again.

Natsuki was blankly staring at the ball, wondering what she should do if it came to her. Now, it was Tomoe's turn to kick. It seemed like she was going to be able to kick the ball far, but it caught a spiral and bounced on the ground. She ran, and made it to first base which was being guarded by Miya.  
The tension between the two of them was noticeable, for Miya began to shake and Tomoe was smiling like she was about to rape the girl.

Mai saw this, and she motioned her hand to make the next person kick, so Miya would be free of Tomoe's violent stare.

Now up to kick, was Takeda, he was tall and black hair beheld his looks. He kicked the ball so hard and so far; it was plumiting right towards Natsuki's face. When Shizuru noticed that she was just standing there staring at the ball, the wind caught her breath.

The ball made contact with Natsuki's body, and the bluenette twisted around, sending the ball flying toward second base. Chie caught the ball in an instant and dropped the ball on the base. Takeda AND Tomoe were out.

"Way to go Kuga!" Mai shouted, clapping her hands.

Natsuki paid no mind, she looked over at Shizuru, watching the woman give her a thumbs up and a warm, prideful smile. Smiling, back, Natsuki didn't realize that Nao had grabbed her arm and was now pulling her to home plate. Now, it was their team's turn to kick.

Why they put Natsuki up to kick first was becoming of an unknown answer, but she had seen the others kick the ball, so she decided to as well. She ran to it and it made contact with her toes, flying out into the sky with powerful velocity. Then, she stood still, but Mai had swiftly told her to go to first base, so she ran there.

She stopped on the white base, and the guarder was looking at her very curiously. Natsuki looked at him, and he smiled warmly at her.

"You're pretty." he mumbled just loud enough for the bluenette to hear.

Natsuki cocked her head to the left and just waved at him. This lasted about thirty seconds, and then, Natsuki felt herself beginning to run again. She was held back though, for the black haired boy's arms were wrapped around her waist, lifting her up in the air.

"Takeda! Put Natsuki down!" Midori shouted, twirling around.

She lunged toward Takeda, jumping into him, sending Natsuki, herself, and the boy to the blacktop. Takeda rolled away, and Midori growled at him while she returned to the kicking line. No one seemed to notice that Natsuki was unmoving.

Mai blew the whistle when she noticed, and the other patients scattered to do their own thing. The orange haired girl sprinted to Natsuki, who was still laying dormant on the ground.

"Natsuki, hey, can you here me?" Mai said before she was joined by Yukariko, Shizuru, and Yukino.

"Let me see her." Shizuru commanded, pushing her way through the small cluster of authorities.

Shizuru reached under Natsuki's back and pulled her up into her lap. She was still breathing, and her eyes were closed, but it seemed that she was in a state of complete shock. She observed Natsuki very carefully, noting every detail in her head. She knew Natsuki was going to be alright, but what concerned her was the puss that was bubbling through Natsuki's eyelids, and the black and blue bruises under her eyes.

"I'm taking her to Miyu."


	4. Chapter 4

"The operation has to start now, we can't wait any longer. It seems the medicine wasn't as strong as I perceived."

Shizuru lay Natsuki on the table and strapped her head and arms down. Then, she looked to Miyu for other directions. She ended up pulling the different surgical items out of the drawers that Miyu had stored under the table. If Natsuki were to see the tools, she would have had a heart attack.

"Sedate her, just in case." Shizuru ordered, feeling worried for the young girl that lay before her.

"Alright, then you go call for assistance. Use line 103 on the phone, say that I request assistance." Miyu said, pulling out a vaccine.

Shizuru made her way over to the phone and dialed up the number, requesting that more doctors come down to the main level.

"I need you to leave, Shizuru-san." Miyu said.

"B-but..."

"Call her mother."

"Well, the operation is taking place now, you can come see her, if you'd like." Shizuru spoke quietly into the phone to Mrs. Kuga.

"I would defiantly come to see her, but...I'm away... I can't see her."

"Oh, alright, Mrs. Kuga."

"I trust her to you, Shizuru-san, please, be the mother I can't be."

"I'll do my best, Mrs. Kuga."

Natsuki was surrounded by doctors, and they were all in lab coats of different colors and shapes. Moaning, Natskuki whipped her head around in pain. The doctor to her left, a male, pushed a syringe full of orange liquid into her arm. Screaming, Natsuki threw herself upward, only to be pushed back down by another person. She thrashed around and bucked her hips, trying anything to get free. Soon enough, however, they strapped Natsuki's head down to the table with a leather strip.

"Shizuru! Shizuru!" Natsuki screeched, making her forehead turn red while she tried to escape.

"She wants Shizuru, call her." Miyu concurred, motioning to a nurse to go and call the woman who took care of Natsuki.

In an instant, Shizuru was in the hallway, hearing her name being called for by one who seemed that they were in complete and utter agony. She rushed into the room, and pushed the doctors out of her way so she could see Natsuki.

As soon as Shizuru appeared in Natsuki's vision, the girl stopped screaming and reached her hand out for Shizuru, but it wouldn't reach her, for it was restrained tightly. Shizuru smiled, sympathetically at Natsuki, and walked around the table to be at Natsuki's head. She pushed the strands of sweaty hair away from the bluenette's face. Then, she unbuckled the leather that restrained Natsuki's head, earning gasps from the other authorities in the room. To their surprise, Natsuki pushed her face into Shizuru's belly, closing her eyes. Taking this opportunity, Shizuru took the syringe that would put the girl to sleep, and popped it into Natsuki's shoulder.

"Continue, gentlemen, ladies." Shizuru said calmly, turning to leave.

"Stay, please." Miyu ordered properly.

Shizuru felt deeply honored, seeing as Miyu was the one that directed her out of the operation room in the first place.

"We will need you to take her back upstairs to her room when she's done with the operation."

With her eyes wrapped up, Natsuki sat in the wheel chair that was being pushed by Shizuru. Her head rolled around on her shoulders, and she occasionally reached up to Shizuru to make sure that she was still with her.

"Ma- Na- Keeki..." Natsuki mumbled, trying to figure out why she couldn't see.

"Natsuki," Shizuru began, "When we get upstairs I'll take the bandage off, alright?"

"Ba...ba...ba... Sheep go baaaa..."

"Alright then," Shizuru chuckled to herself. "you be a good girl."

Shizuru rolled Natsuki into the elevator, pressing the up button. Natsuki jumped up and down lightly in her chair, and she moaned in different pitches so loud that Shizuru could barely hear herself think.  
"Natsuki, dear, please keep your voice down." Shizuru said, pushing the girl out of the elevator.

Shizuru gently un-stuck the adhesive bandage over Natsuki's face, and was happy when sparkling green orbs met her crimson eyes. Under the lower eyelid, right above Natsuki's cheekbones, stitches resided. About five black lines were under Natsuki's right eye, and seven under her left. Goo was hidden under each of the stitches, but it made the patched area look glossy and made it shine.

Shizuru reached out of her pocket and pasted an adhesive strip under each of Natsuki's eyes, making it so that the bluenette couldn't pick at her wound. Natsuki barely noticed the equipment that blocked her from meddling with her face, it wasn't as heavy as the one that Miyu put on her.

"Shizuru knows that she's Natsuki's favorite person."

Shizuru sighed and began to push the wheel chair down the hall until she was close to the reception desk. The secretary was sitting there, and she looked up and smiled warmly at the two in front of her office. Natsuki crawled out of her chair, unnoticed by Shizuru, and she inched over to the door that led to Yohko's office. Seeing it was open, Natsuki waddled inside. Shizuru was gently speaking with Yohko about getting Natsuki some medicine. meanwhile, the young girl crawled over to the medicine cabinet, and shoved her hand into the different containers of pills, making a very loud noise. Both SHizuru and Yohko turned to look. Shizuru had to lean over the counter to see through the window at the girl who was climbing up into the cabinet.

"Natsuki!" Shizuru said sternly, running into the office.

Grabbing Natsuki's waist, Shizuru was able to pull the girl off of the shelf and out of the cabinet. Natsuki was mad, but she didn't do anything when Shizuru sat her on the ground and began to reprimand her. Bored, Natsuki rolled back onto her hands and knees and crawled over to another compartment which held Yohko's files. She placed a hand on the plastic organizers and pulled the filing object down, sending papers flying everywhere.

Shizuru quickly grabbed Natsuki's arm and pulled her out of the office, forcing her back in the wheel chair. Shizuru didn't want to do this, but she pulled the strap over Natsuki's waist, restraining her from getting out of the chair. Natsuki protested and she rocked back and forth violently, clapping her hands together in an odd pattern. Shizuru apologized to Yohko, before moving Natsuki into the entertainment room, where a few volunteers were setting up for a game that Yukino came up with.

Natsuki stuck her tongue out and hissed at the men, but Shizuru put her hand over Natsuki's mouth feeling Natsuki's teeth nibble down on her palm. Natsuki swished her head out of the way, and she did not calm down.

Shizuru brought Natsuki over to the window where a long table held three computers for the patients to play on. She sat down in the swirling chair, and pulled Natsuki close to her so that the latter could clearly see the computer.

"Fuck!"

Shizuru stopped in her motions, turning to Natsuki.

Natsuki was oblivious. Tomoe was behind the two of them, cussing and swearing like a sailor. She noticed Shizuru and Natsuki, and she ran to Shizuru, jumping into her lap. This made Natsuki scream. She thrashed around in her wheel chair, reaching for Shizuru who was trying to stop Tomoe from falling out of her lap.

Shizuru had no choice, she gently picked Tomoe up and walked around the corner and into the hallway so that Natsuki wouldn't disrupt them. Setting Tomoe down, Shizuru sighed at the screams that were coming from Natsuki.

"What's wrong, Tomoe? We aren't going to say that word ever again okay?" Shizuru asked, trying to best hide her anger and frustration.

"I was playing with the guys, and the people, and I kicked the ball, and it hit Miya. I tried to see if she was okay, but Yukino and Mai wouldn't let me."

Shizuru knelt down next to Tomoe and took her wrists. "Well, you know what happened with you and Miya. You two aren't supposed to talk to each other."

"B-but she was crying, and..." Tomoe stopped, falling to her knees and into Shizuru's chest.

An excuse. The truth was different. Tomoe had kicked the ball, and it had hit Miya. Although, contradictory to Tomoe's description. While Miya was getting up from the blow, Tomoe had snaked up to her. Looking upward, Miya was terrified at Tomoe's face that was looming over her own.  
Mai had tried to stop Tomoe from getting any closer, but it was too late, Tomoe had leaned down and bitten Miya on the neck, leaving a bloody hickey as a possession mark.

"Tomoe, hey," Shizuru began, starting to catch on to the girl's motive, "I can't give you any support on this, I wasn't there, so I can only let you talk to me about it."

Tomoe pushed Shizuru down onto her backside and crawled into her lap, nuzzling her lips into the crook of Shizuru's neck. Shizuru tensed, knowing Tomoe's radical behavior. She tried to shorten the length of her neck, but Tomoe's head pushed her away.

"Tomoe, please."

Tomoe ran her tongue over Shizuru's neck, invading her space. Shizuru tried to get the girl away from her in an acceptable manner, yet Tomoe was extremely persistent. Tomoe kissed up around Shizuru's jaw line, but the doctor wouldn't let her get any further. Shizuru stood up and turned, leaving Tomoe on the floor.

Returning to Natsuki, Shizuru clutched her neck, feeling the tingling remnant of Tomoe's lips on her smooth skin. Natsuki was crying and sniffling when she came back, but those whimpers turned into quiet moans when Shizuru unbuckled her from the chair and pulled the teenager into her lap.  
She turned the computer on, and clicked on a program called 'Accelerated Learning for Children'. Natsuki was no child physically, but her brain hadn't grown up just yet. When the sounds of the computer reached Natsuki's ears, she turned to look at the screen. It was white and little pink bubbles where popping up and down in front of the menu.

Shizuru took the mouse and pressed play. More music filled the area, as a problem came up. Natsuki touched the screen where a fat rabbit was munching on a carrot next to the question. Shizuru took Natsuki's hand and moved her forefinger to the beginning of the first quarry.

"Natsuki, answer the question for me." Shizuru ordered nicely, resting her chin on the shoulder of the girl in her lap. "Read the question out loud, alright?"

"What is the square root of sixty-four..." Natsuki murmured, looking back to her doctor, then back to the screen when Shizuru nodded toward the screen. "Square root."

Natsuki dropped the back of her head on Shizuru's shoulder, making a nasal tune from her mouth.

"So, what is it?"

"Eight?" Natsuki answered with a question.

"Very good, let's go to the next question." Shizuru clicked the next button on the screen and another question popped up.

"Who is Edgar Allen Po and where is he from?"

Natsuki didn't know this one, she shook her head at the screen and Shizuru.

"He is a poet from where, Natsuki?"

"I don't know."

"America?"

"I think so."

Shizuru tucked her hair behind her ear and clicked out of the program, seeing as she herself was getting bored with the 'game'. She set Natsuki down and went to sit on the couch in front of the TV that was in the middle of the room. Natsuki followed and she climbed up onto the couch and lay over Shizuru's lap, resting her head on the pillow that stood on the other side of the couch.

Night had fallen, and the group on the level of the building had eaten dinner and now the doctors were putting the patients to bed. Shizuru was trying to get Arika into her room, but the latter ran around in the hallway before the rooms. Seeing the trouble, Midori caught Arika and threw her in her room, allowing Shizuru to go in and say goodnight to the braided-haired child. Yukino had just shut the door to Haruka's room, and now she waved to Midori as she closed her own door. Nao was in her room, it had taken her a long time to get there, however. Shizuru locked the door, and turned to her other patients that were still out and about. She waved to Yukino who had finished with her patients, and watched the woman leave the hallway. Shizuru was now the only authority in the room for Mai and Yohko had gone down to the worker's chambers. Remembering the two souls that were also in the area with her, Shizuru made her way to the entertainment room where the two girls were.

Natsuki was under the couch, which wasn't surprising. Toys were scattered around her and her bare feet showed the little toes that wiggled about as the latter played under the couch. The TV was on, and the quiet sounds of music came floating into the room. Before they went to bed, the group would normally watch a movie, and that night they had watched Bambi. Natsuki accidentally screwed up the DVD player, so Mai had to take a long time to fix the thing, so the patients weren't able to watch the entire movie before bedtime.

Tomoe was the other patient that was still awake. She was over in the corner of the large room, and she was drawing on a piece of paper that was illuminated by the crescent moon. She herself had decided not to take part in the movie night, for Natsuki would be there, and she did not like Natsuki at all.  
Shizuru approached Natsuki first, tapping her leg. Startled, the feet that were hanging out from the underside of the couch slipped inward so that the owner of the feet was completely under the bed.  
Chuckling, Shizuru said, "Natsuki, you ready for bed?"

Natsuki poked her head out from under the sofa and rested her chin on the carpet. She answered, "No."

"Why not?"

Natsuki looked left and right, making sure no one else was around. "There's a monster under my bed."

"A monster? Ara, Natsuki, you can beat up a monster." Shizuru said, motioning for Natsuki to come out of her hiding space.

Natsuki obeyed the silent command, and she crawled into Shizuru's lap, resting her head on her doctor's shoulder. Shizuru placed a hand on the back of Natsuki's head and gently let her hand caress the skin under the girl's fine cobalt hair.

"It has big teeth, and red eyes, and it's furry, and it...it said it would eat me..."

"Oh, Natsuki, I'll check under your bed for you to make sure nothing can get you."

Shizuru stood up and pointed to Natsuki's room, and the girl ran there with no hesitation. Now, Shizuru just had to get Tomoe into her room.

"Tomoe, bedtime, let's go." Shizuru said before walking over to the area in front of the rooms.

Following, Tomoe left her paper on the floor in the entrainment center, excited to see Shizuru. She saw that her doctor was in Natsuki's room, looking under the bed while the blue-haired girl sat nervously above her, chewing on her stuffed puppy's ear. Tomoe watched as Shizuru got up and murmured something to Natsuki while she guided the girl down on the bed. Then, the brunette pulled the blanket over the teenager's body and tucked her in, nice and tight.

Giving a warm smile to Natsuki, Shizuru turned and left the room, shutting the door. Finally, she turned to Tomoe. She put an arm around the child's shoulders and tugged her toward the room at the end of the hall. Tomoe felt the doctor's warm body, and almost on instinct, she clutched the bronze colored business coat that the woman wore when nighttime's cold wind arrived.

When they reached the room, Tomoe let go of Shizuru and sat down on the bed, looking up pleadingly at crimson eyes.

"Goodnight, Tomoe." Shizuru said, smiling weakly before she left the room and shut the door, locking it behind her.

Tomoe frowned. Shizuru hadn't tucked her in, she hadn't given her a hug, and she hadn't made sure that she was safe. The latter did that to Natsuki, but not to Tomoe. Envy raged through the girl, and she fell down on the bed before the master light system was shut off. She closed her eyes and thought of how she could win Shizuru's attention back.

"Yes, mother."

-How are you doing? Are you working hard?-

"Of course! I always work my hardest, and everything is going fine, what about you?" Shizuru said into her mobile phone as she shut the door to her room which stood at the end of the hallway in the basement of the institution. Her room was painted in a light brown, and the carpet was a fluffy white one, and in the middle of the room was a queen sized bed, decorated with many pillows. Off to the side of the bed, was a small lamp on a little table that also held a digital clock. On the right side of the room, another door opened into a beautifully made bathroom that also included a closet that held Shizuru's clothing. Finally, on the side of the room, was a small desk that held a phone, a file stand, and a lamp.

-I'm alright! Tell me, how is that one girl that likes you so much. Tomoe, was it?-

"Yes, her name is Tomoe." Shizuru answered, sitting down in her desk chair.

-Well, how is she?-

"She tried to kiss me tonight."

-Then, Shizuru, I'm guessing that she isn't doing any better?-

Sighing, Shizuru continued, "You're right, but we also got a new patient that doesn't help her obsession."

-Tell me about her, then.-

"Well," Shizuru began, resting her head in her hand, "her name is Natsuki Kuga, she's fifteen, and she is very autistic."

-Is she nice?-

"She is a handful, but she is such a sweet girl. The only thing she wants is her mother. She's in my group, and I do spend most of my time with her. She just got two tumors removed from her eyes, and she seems to be recovering well. She has this odd habit of hiding under furniture; and today she had me check under her bed for monsters."

-She seems adorable, I would be excited to meet her. Shizuru, I have to go now. I love you and I'll see you later.-

"Goodbye, mother."

Shizuru hung up the phone, and then she went to the bathroom where she stripped her work clothes and jumped into her pajamas. She brushed her teeth and hair, and then she curled up on her bed, falling asleep for the night.

Natsuki sat up slowly in her bed before stretching her arms and yawning like a lion. The bluenette had slept well, and she was now rubbing the crust that accumulated in her eyes. She crawled out of bed, and onto the floor, over to the sink. Getting on her knees, Natsuki flicked the valve and opened her mouth under the faucet. Clean, cold, spring water fell out of the contraption, and onto her tongue. She gulped down a lot of water before she turned the sink off; turning to the door, she pushed the curtain that concealed her personal bathroom aside and grabbed the handle to the door, seeing it was still locked. Whining, she sat cross-legged and began to bang her head on the door, repeating the word 'out' over and over again.

Soon enough, Mai came running. The door opened and Natsuki hustled out like a dog that had rabies. She rampaged through the entertainment center where Midori was sitting on the couch reading, bit when Natsuki came, that changed. Natsuki jumped up onto Midori's lap and off of the back side of the furniture, ripping Midori's magazine in the process.

Mai quickly chased after Natsuki while Yohko took the liberty to unlock the rooms of the other patients who had been rudely awakened by Natsuki's head banging.

"Natsuki! Come back here now!" Mai yelled. "Midori, help me catch her."

Midori was off of the couch in a second, and she was hot on Natsuki's tail. Natsuki knew that she was being chased, so she swerved to the left and ran out the doors that kept her in that section of the building. She was not supposed to leave the third floor, ever.  
When Midori saw that the girl had barged through the doors at the end of the hallway, she stopped in her tracks, letting Mai rush after the blue-haired troublemaker.

Natsuki had found the staircase and jumped over the steps too the second floor, then to the first floor, ending up in the basement. It was nice down there, but it looked like the floor of an apartment, not the basement.

She ran down one hallway, then another, and another until she smelled something familiar. Tea. Shizuru. Over the first day or two that she had first met the woman, Natsuki had developed a connection, and new who Shizuru was by her smell as well as other attributes. The bluenette sprinted on her fours to the base of the smell, and she ended up in a small room with a table in the middle, and a small countertop off to the side. On the granite, Natsuki saw the tea pot. Steam puffed above the glass, and the smell was strong. Surprisingly, Shizuru wasn't there.

When Natsuki turned around, she saw an infuriated Mai glaring at her. Quietly, Natsuki sat down on her backside and plopped her hands on the ground in front of her knees, making the teenager look like a puppy.

Mai pointed to the ground in-front of her, and Natsuki inched over to the spot to be flicked in the forehead. Natsuki smiled, thinking that Mai was playing. She ran right through Mai's legs, but she was caught before she could get any farther. Pulling Natsuki to her feet, Mai was prepared for a struggle that was much anticipated. Natsuki batted at the nurse, teething at her wrists that kept a hard grip of the latter. Mai pulled Natsuki against her body and pushed her to the ground before kneeling next to the puppy with a plastic loop. She pulled Natsuki's arms behind her back, slipping them through the plastic loop, tightening the object so that Natsuki's hands were restrained. Mai got Natsuki to her feet again, and tugged her toward the elevator.

Natsuki hissed violently and swung her head back, trying to hit Mai in the lip, but it was no use. Mai had been an apprentice police officer before her job at the institution, and she learned a lot. Until the reached the elevator, Natsuki had kept quiet except for a few moans and growls, but now she was screaming like someone died in front of her. When they reached the third floor, Mai pushed Natsuki back into the hallway that let to the area where the girl spent her days. Instead of going back into that area, now called DHMI or the Department of Healing for the Mentally Ill, Mai brought Natsuki into the cafeteria where all of the patients were, where Shizuru was.

Normally, Shizuru wouldn't be eating with the group, but she wanted to see Natsuki for an unknown reason. When she did see the girl, restrained in a lower level of handcuffs, Shizuru was out of her seat in an instant. She took Natsuki from Mai and pushed her into a seat that was at the end of the line of cafeteria tables in the second row. Shizuru looked back at Mai, curious as to why Natsuki was restrained.

"She got out of the DHMI wing, and she ran all the way to the basement. I caught her there, and she put up a fight. Trying to bite and hit me, she also nearly head-butted me. I couldn't get her up here without restraining the kid." Mai explained.

Shaking her head, Shizuru replied, "I'm sorry for her behavior, she'll be spending a lot of time in my office today."

"Then I'm guessing I can leave her in your hands?"

"Yes, Mai. Thank you for catching her for me."

Mai nodded, and then left in the other direction, leaving Natsuki stuck with Shizuru. The anger in her eyes was shown clearly while the irises beheld a deep red instead of crimson. Natsuki, now rocking back and forth in her chair, murmured repeated words to herself. Shizuru wanted to get a closer look at Natsuki, so she knelt down on the ground and took the girl's dormant hands.

"Natsuki, why?"

"I want Shizuru."

"I'm right here."

Natsuki fell to her knees before Shizuru and pressed her head into the woman's stomach. "I love 'Zuru."  
Shizuru cocked her head to the right and wrapped her arms around Natsuki, pulling her closer. Shizuru had known that she had probably replaced Natsuki's mother, seeing as the two Kugas were separated for so long. This was okay with Shizuru, but it was also a bad thing. Someday, Natsuki would have to leave the institution and therefore be separated from Shizuru.

"That's nice, Natsuki." Shizuru said warmly, burying her face in Natsuki's cobalt hair.

Letting her mind wander, Shizuru felt her lips brush over Natsuki's forehead, moving down toward the soft flesh of the patient's neck. She didn't know what she was doing, but somehow, she liked it. She liked the feel of the young girl in her arms, the warm flesh, the slow beating heart, the feeling of authority to protect Natsuki, her Natsuki.

Quickly, Shizuru pulled away, realizing that she had started to go a little far. Natsuki pushed her hands into Shizuru's stomach, motioning her head at the restraints. Sighing, Shizuru took the clasp and undid the plastic with great effort. Natsuki, realizing she was free, tangled her arms in Shizuru's.

"Natsuki, let's go to my office, okay?"


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Note- Hey all. I really appreciate your reviews, and I'm happy my story has an impact on you. Natsuki and Shizuru's relationship will start to progress, but seeing the situation, Shizuru will not be taking advantage of Natsuki in any way. When the relationship begins, Natsuki wants it too as well as Shizuru does.

Also, I have a note to one of my reviewers.

Man89au said this to me:

Interesting story… kind of weird to see Natsuki acting such child-like, hopefully we can see some improvement in Natsuki soon. :s

This is my response: Natsuki is AUTISTIC. Her mind is disabled, and she will always be a kid at heart. She has trouble learning about society do to her disability. I would recommend understanding the story before placing reviews on it. I appreciate your criticism, but please do some studying first. I'm not saying all autistic people are like this, but some are. (Sorry if that came out rude.)

Without further adeu, enjoy!

…..

After Shizuru had gotten her and Natsuki breakfast, she made her way to the office that she occupied most of the day. It was a sunny day out, so when she entered the room, with her little puppy behind her, she set the tray on the desk and went to open the windows. Fresh air flew into the room, making Natsuki hop onto one of the leather chairs and sniff the air.

Shizuru returned to her seat and pulled out a pad of clean white paper and two pens. She had Natsuki pull the chair right up to the desk so she could see, and then she told Natsuki to eat her food. Taking a plastic fork in hand, she speared one of the fruits in the small, styrofoam bowl and shoved in into her mouth, chewing it like a rabid wolf,

Shizuru took her teacup and brought it to her lips, then took a small sip of the liquid before setting it back down on the tray. Shizuru always had tea and only tea for breakfast, for she didn't like the food that the cafeteria had to offer.

"Natsuki, dear, how are you this morning?"

"Bah..." Natsuki murmured, crossing her arms over her chest.

Shizuru frowned sarcastically and leaned over he desk to grab Natsuki's chin. Pulling the girl's face upward, Shizuru looked into Natsuki's emerald eyes that were filled with anger and confusion.  
"Hey, look at me."

"Natsuki wants to go to town." the bluenette muttered in third person, earning a wide-eyed look from Shizuru.

"Town, huh?" Shizuru repeated, leaning back into her seat. "Where would you like to go?"

"Toy store."

"I can arrange that, but remember, you are going to have to share me with Nao, Tomoe, Arika, and yourself."

"I will do it."

"Alright, I guess we could go out today, but I'm going to have Midori chaperone."

Everyone from Shizuru's group was completely extatic that they were going to leave the institution for a field trip. Midori agreed to chaperone, and she was now taking attendance of the patients that were surrounding Shizuru's Toyota Sequoia Platinum. Natsuki was bent over poking her hand between the tires, and she was unaware that Tomoe was planning to kick her.

"Tomoe-chan, you shouldn't hold your leg up that far, you might hit someone."

Tomoe glared at Midori while she put her foot back down, but she was completely distracted when Shizuru walked up to the car holding her purse and a coffee mug filled with tea.

"Ara, Midori, is everyone alright? It seems as if Natsuki has found another hiding place." Shizuru mused, chuckling at the feet that just disappeared under the car.

"Everyone is fine, are we ready to go?"

"I believe so. Okay everyone!" Shizuru began, clapping her hands. "Get in the car! Remember, Midori gets to sit in the front with me."

All of the patients began to argue with each other as to who got to sit where. Arika hopped into the back; Tomoe and Nao sat in the middle; and Midori, after she pulled Natsuki out from under the car, put the bluenette into the back with Arika. Shizuru was in the driver's seat while Midori sat in shotgun. Soon, everyone was buckled up and secure, so they could depart.

"Okay, girls," Shizuru began, "We are going to listen to disney songs, and we are going to go clockwise to see who picks the first tune."

Midori added, "So that means I get to pick first."

Shizuru chuckled and handed the orange-haired girl a CD case before turning the keys, starting the car. Midori found her CD and shoved in into the stereo, pressing play. Soon, the song, "You've Got a Friend in Me" began to fill the atmosphere in the car.

"Erstin likes this song!" Arika shouted, making Natsuki jump.

"Arika, inside voices, alright sweetie?" Shizuru said, moving the lever on her car into 'reverse'.

"Sorry..."

Natsuki began her rocking again, and she clutched the back of Tomoe's seat. Arika looked at her curiously, and then she started to move in sync with the girl sitting next to her. Natsuki noticed this, and she smiled at Arika who smiled back.

Shizuru was driving forward now, and the people in the car began to mingle amongst each other. Midori was trying to get everyone to be social, so she decided she would play a sort of 'game' with the group.

"Hey, Nao, what do you like about being with us?" Midori asked, peering into a bitter face.

"Privacy."

"What about you, Arika?"

"I made a new friend!" she shouted, looking at Natsuki who was still moving back and forth.

"That's great! Do you know her name?"

"Natsuki!"

"Speaking of Natsuki," Shizuru interupted, "what do you like about this place?"

Natsuki changed the motion of her rocking, and she opened her mouth, answering, "I like Shizuru."

Tomoe's face turned white and she angrily cursed under her breath.

"Tomoe?" Midori continued.

"I like nothing." She growled.

It was quiet for a little bit, and Natsuki was curious and bored, so she grabbed Arika's braid and waved it around in the girl's face. Laughing, Arika took Natsuki's hair, and did the same thing.

In about an hour, the group arrived at the biggest toy store in the area. When Natsuki saw it, she yipped in excitement and crawled over the seat in front of her, right into Nao's lap. Ignoring the bluenette, Nao just looked out the window while the teenager pushed her head in-between the front seats.

"Natsuki, you bad girl." Shizuru said, giggling.

Finally, the group had parked the car in the back of the parking lot, and now, Shizuru would have to explain some rules. Turning off her car and unbuckling her belt, Shizuru turned around to face the patients.

"Okay, girls. I have to lay some rules. It isn't everyday or week even, that I would take you out into town, so if you don't behave, we will never do this again. We will travel as a group, and I want you all to be on your best behaviors, and try to keep calm. If you get lost, just stay where you are, and Midori or I will come and find you."

"Also, wear these, so people know you are from the institution." Midori said, handing a bunch of necklaces with lamenated passes hooked on the end. The print on the passes each said, 'Be nice to me! I'm from Fuuka Mental Institution!'

The were passed out, and when everyone had them on, Shizuru had everyone get out of the car. She and Midori did a quick headcount, and noticed that Natsuki and Arika were both crawling under the car. Shizuru, smiling, called them out, and was very happy when there were bright smiles on their faces.  
Tomoe quickly latched onto Shizuru's arm, and Nao made her way silently to Midori's side, seeing as she could actually talk with her and mean something.

"Guys, let's go!" Midori notified, satisfied when Natsuki and Arika ran up to the group.

Natsuki held onto Shizuru's free hand and Arika was holding onto Natsuki's arm. Together with Midori and Nao, the small cluster of females walked up to the entrance of the building. Natsuki had started to shake with anticipation, and Arika tried to copy her, but it was a sad attempt. When they entered the store, Natsuki's mouth opened in astonishment. Toy airplanes and cars were buzzing around the area, and rows upon rows of gadgets and gizmos lined the walls and middle of the store.

"Ah! Ah! Ah!" Natsuki barked, getting free of Arika and pointing at the sign that said 'trains, legos, and boardgames'.

"You want to go there?" Shizuru asked, running her hand through Natsuki's long hair.

Nodding, Natsuki jumped and jittered, making a few other children look their way. Shizuru just simply smiled and waved before she brought the group to the place where Natsuki wanted to go. When the teen saw the legos in the display cases, she ran to them and plopped her face on the plastic window.

"Natsuki, do you like legos?" Midori asked, approaching the girl.

"I like Shizuru."

"Oh!" Interjected Shizuru, "I almost forgot, I have a present for you guys. If you want to get anything, I'll buy it for you if it costs no more than ten dollars, okay?"

Shizuru was amused at the happy faces from all of her patients, even Nao. "Hey, girls, how about we go somewhere else? Tomoe wants to go see the other toys here."

When they had reached where Tomoe wanted to go, the teal-haired girl was excited. She found a stuffed rabbit that cost seven dollars. She grabbed it off of the shelf, and ran back to Shizuru, telling the woman that she wanted the rabbit. Shizuru compled and pat Tomoe's head, ignoring what had happened between them earlier.

Soon, Nao found what she wanted, which was a Pepsi and a pack of Skittles. She wasn't one that liked toys, but she did like food. When Natsuki found what she wanted, she made sure to shove it into Shizuru's face to make sure she saw it. It was a small box that held a black steam engine inside. It was only nine dollars, but it was very good quality, seeing as it smoked out of the top and made noises.

Arika still hadn't found what she wanted, but she did see something that looked familiar. She tried to get a closer look, but the object continued to walk around, but still, she was going to be following the sight across the store, until she saw her.

"N-Nina..." She murmured, running to the girl.

Hearing footsteps rapidly approach her, Nina turned around, wide eyed at what she saw. Smiling warmly, she opened her arms and embraced Arika lovingly. Surprised, Nina was, that Arika was here. Happy, but surprised.

"Arika?" Nina said aloud, resting her head in the crook of the girl's neck.

"Nina! Nina! Nina!" Arika repeated, clutching onto the teen's shirt.

Nina was here on her break from boarding school, and she was to buy a toy or game for her newborn cousin, but she was astonished to see Arika here instead of the institution.

"What are you doing here?" Nina asked kindly, noticing the pass that hung around Arika's neck. "Ah, a field trip."

"Nina, I found Nina, my Nina!" Arika said.

Sadly, Nina knew what she had to do. Taking Arika's shoulders, she pulled the girl into the middle of the store, trying to find the group from the FMI.

"Arika, how have you been?"

"I made a friend, and stuff, and I want to go with Nina!"

It was Nina who put Arika in the hospital. Nina was an independent child, so she already had an appointment and she rarely ever needed help from her parents. She was like an adult, only shorter. Arika had been a homeless girl that Nina took in for a while. They grew a bond, but Arika had begun to show certain symptoms that were not usual. Nina took her to the doctor's office many times, but they had refered them to the FMI over and over again. Nina had refused the offer many times, but Arika's condition became worse, so she complied.

"Ah, here." Nina said, seeing the familiar light brown hair. "Hey!" Nina said, catching the woman's attention.

Shizuru turned around franticly, indicating that she had been searching for Arika. Realizing who the person that was holding Arika was, Shizuru smiled and sighed in relief.

"Nina-san."

"Sorry about Arika, she is quite persistant." Nina apologized, shaking hands with Shizuru.

"Arika, I told you not to run away!" Shizuru said sternly, placing her hands on her hips.

"I saw Nina!"

"Still..."

"Arika, will you go with Shizuru?" Nina asked as her heart dropped when the look on Arika's face turned into remorse.

"You won't stay..."

"Ara, Arika-chan, I think Nina-san would be delighted as to join us for lunch, ne?" Shizuru offered, shooting a warning look at Nina.

"Really! Can she come!" Arika asked, turning to Nina.

Nina, unsure of herself, smiled and nodded.

"Great!" Shizuru added. "We're about ready to go to lunch, so, Arika, do you want to get anything? The others already have their things and their waiting with Midori at the entrance to the store."

"I want Nina, and only Nina."  
"Alright then. Nina-san, if you would, please follow us to the resturaunt."

Natsuki was quiet on the way to the lunch. She was too busy looking at her new train. when the group finally reached the restraunt, Natsuki made her way to stand by Shizuru, making sure that she got to the woman first.

"Natsuki, are you hungry?" Shizuru asked, checking to see if Midori was getting everyone else ready.  
Shizuru took Natsuki in the building to find a table for the group. A nice host showed the two women to a booth that had a round table and the cushioned seats circled the surface. Shizuru sat down, thanking the man.

Natsuki crawled up next to Shizuru right before the rest of the group came up and took their seats. Arika, however, sat next to Nina and made sure of it. Tomoe was forced to sit by Natsuki, and it was as if the tension between them could practically be physically seen.

"So, did everyone enjoy themselves today?" Shizuru asked.

They nodded, and when the waitress came they began to order their drinks. When the waitress turned to Natsuki, she asked the girl what she wanted.

Natsuki stared blankly at the woman and waved at her face, only to be scolded by Shizuru.

"Natsuki, do you like chocolate?"

Nodding, Natsuki tried to crawl under the table only to be restrained by Shizuru who grabbed the waist line of the bluenette's pants.

"She'll have chocolate milk, please."

The waitress nodded and left the group seeing that Natsuki was the last one to order her drink. Shizuru pulled Natsuki out from under the table and tugged a bit on the girl's ear as a punishment. Natsuki yipped a little and fell into Shizuru's lap.

Sighing deeply, Tomoe stomped on Natsuki's foot under the table, making the girl scream as loud as she could. Shizuru jumped at the sudden outburst, and looked at Natsuki who had tears forming in her eyes.  
"Natsuki!" Shizuru said, pulling the girl into her chest to muffle the screams that were flowing out of the girl's mouth.

Natsuki crawled up into Shizuru's grasp and glared at Tomoe, knowing it was the teal haired girl who had hurt her. Shizuru also had figured that the culprit was non other than Tomoe. She looked at the girl and shook her head.

"Tomoe, you are going to be confined today." Shizuru snapped. "In the solitary room."

In time, Shizuru has taken everyone home, and sure enough, Tomoe was put into Solitary. Nina had said goodbye to Arika, and now the orange-haired girl was in her room crying her eyes out. Natsuki had went to bed early, and Shizuru decided to stay in her room for the rest of the afternoon to watch the girl and make sure she was okay, for the bluenette had a difficult afternoon.


	6. Chapter 6

It had been a year since Natsuki was put into the institution, but not much had changed. March fifth, the day she was in, was long since forgotten; and now on March twenty-first, she found the place to be her home, where her family was. It was saturday; quiet, calm, relaxing. The group had been allowed to journey around outside for the day because it was warm and sunny out. Now, sixteen, Natsuki sat cross-legged at the base of the fence that kept her concealed to the hospital. She had her stitches removed a month ago, and she was to wear bandages for the next to weeks to ensure a complete recovery.

Her feud with Tomoe hadn't ended, but the tactics turned from phsysical, to mental. Tomoe was drawing in her sketch book while she sat on the blacktop, and she wasn't nervous about Nao and Mai who were playing basketball. Arika was at the picnic table, playing a game with herself, more, her friend Rumi. Rumi was her imaginary friend who replaced Natsuki when the girl was sad or gone.

Natsuki was sad at the moment, for Shizuru wasn't outside with her. Instead, Shizuru was interviewing the board. Shizuru was entrusting her patients with Mai so she would be completely focused on the new matters.

It would be a surprise for the group, but it would be a hell of a handful. She had to finish the meeting soon, for she had to take Natsuki to the highschool. Recently, Shizuru decided that Natsuki needed to figure out how to do some school work, so, every other week on Saturday, they would go and get private tutoring. If Natsuki was good, the Shizuru would treat her to ice cream. They normally left around two thirty in the afternoon, and it was approaching two. At two fifteen, Shizuru was finally allowed out of the meeting.

She quickly went to Natsuki's room and grabbed her previous work and shoved it in a blue folder. Then, Shizuru rushed downstairs to her car and packed everything up before going to gather the teen. When she called for Natsuki, the girl came running. She hopped into the front seat after Shizuru opened the gate for her, and she watched the woman who took her to the school turn the car on. Shizuru was getting a little nervous when Natsuki reached out and tapped the steering wheel, but the girl only did it once.

"Natsuki?"

Looking at the woman, Natsuki blinked and yipped like a puppy.

"Would you like to go somewhere special?"

A nod.

"Okay."

"Good afternoon! Natsuki, how are you today?"

The room was a fifth grade class room, and pictures were all over the walls along with posters that promoted learning. In the room, five rows of desks lined down the middle of the room and at the front was a large teacher desk in front of a blackboard.

The teacher, Mrs. Gisuki, was a thin woman in her mid thirties, and she had blue eyes, blonde hair, rosy cheeks and wore glasses that matched her small jump suited dress. She stood up and shook Shizuru's hand before turning to Natsuki.

"Natsuki," Shizuru said, "say hello."

Natsuki looked at Shizuru with big eyes and a puppy face. "Why?"

"Because I said so."

Natsuki sat down on the ground and curled up around Shizuru's bare leg. Today, the woman wore a pair of black high heels, a navy blue button down shirt, and a white skirt that came down to her mid thighs. Her hair was tied back in a pretty bun, suspended by a traditional Japanese hair pin.

"It's quite alright, Fujino-san, she probably doesn't want you to leave." Gisuki confirmed, returning to her desk.

Shizuru nodded and shook her leg free of the little puppy to go and pull up a chair and a desk to the big teacher desk where Natsuki would be taught. When Shizuru patted the seat connected to the desk, Natsuki crawled over to her and climbed into the seat. Natsuki was breathing hard in anticipation, but when Shizuru sat down next to her, the puppy's heart beat returned to normal and the breaths became quieter and more relaxed.

"Natsuki, can you tell the teacher why you didn't do your assignment?" Shizuru asked, making Natsuki's face turn pale.

The teacher frowned and looked at Natsuki.

"Um..." Natsuki began, "I... My dog didn't eat my homework...I did."

"Natsuki didn't eat her assignment," explained Shizuru, "she locked herself in the bathroom for three hours and after I had gotten her out she cried until her bedtime."

"Ah. Well, then I guess I'll have her redo the lesson."

Natsuki grabbed Shizuru's shoulder and shook her head until Shizuru pushed her off.

"Natsuki, I'm going to go out in the hall, you work with the teacher."

Shizuru stood and swiftly exited the room, shutting the door firmly. Before Natsuki could reach the door, the teacher had slipped a contraption around the doorknob that would prevent Natsuki from escaping. Soon, however, Natsuki had ran to the door and banged on it, screaming for Shizuru. Tears fell from the girls eyes as she felt her knees hit the ground. Shizuru listened to the banging while she sat on the bench right outside of the classroom. She had already called the teacher before they left, saying that Natsuki would be a little bit of trouble today. They had planned the doorknob, and they knew Natsuki would put up a fight.

While Natsuki was throwing a fit, Gisuki cleaned the papers off of her desk and replaced them with a math book, a pencil, calculator, and a pad of graph paper. She took the worksheet out from under her drawer and set it in the middle of the book.

"Natsuki, Shizuru will come in after you finish your lesson."

Natsuki was laying on her side, coughing back tears, and now she was slapping the door lightly, letting her hand flop to the ground. She ignored the teacher at first, but eventually, she made her way back to the chair and sat down.

"Good, now let's start your lesson."

"Natsuki, thank you for listening tonight, do you want some ice cream?" Shizuru asked, earning a smile from the teen.

Natsuki looked at Shizuru and remembered to buckle her seat belt. Smiling to the woman, Natsuki murmured a 'thank you'. In time, they had gotten their ice cream and returned home. Natsuki, upon arriving, was sound asleep in the seat of the car, and Shizuru would have to either wake her up or carry her in.

Shizuru unbuckled her seat belt and turned the car off before getting out and walking to Natsuki side of the car. Looking at her watch, Shizuru noted that it was six forty-five in the evening, and they were only late to dinner by fifteen minutes. Shizuru opened the door quietly for Natsuki, and she leaned over to release the girl from the seat. Shizuru had no intention of waking Natsuki until they got to the cafeteria, so she reached her arms under the teen's legs and lower back, lifting her out of the car like a mother would.

Natsuki figured that Shizuru was carrying her, so she hummed a short note to show comfort in the woman who held her. Shizuru continued up and into the building where a receptionist sat behind a marble office desk. She smiled at Shizuru and whispered that the two could go to the third floor without signing in.

Natsuki didn't like the elevator much, so when Shizuru pressed the button, Natsuki squirmed a little in her doctor's arms. Shizuru looked down on Natsuki's face as the elevator began to ascend. She began to sing the bluenette a quiet lullabye in the form of a whisper, and the puppy relaxed imediately.

A ding noted that the elevator had reached the third floor, and when the doors opened, Shizuru stepped out in the hallway with Natsuki still in her arms. Together they walked to the cafeteria where everyone was.

Natsuki was set in a couch on the side of the wall next to the buffet line. However, Natsuki immediately realized that she was no longer in Shizuru's hold. She awoke fast and crawled after Shizuru who was getting a plate ready for the bluenette's evening meal.

"Natsuki, honey-"

"Shizuru-onee-chan!"

Tomoe.

Shizuru inwardly cursed, but on her face was a mask of happiness and determination. Tomoe ran into the doctor's arms and pressed her cheeks into the elder woman's breasts. Looking at Natsuki, Tomoe stuck her tongue out, and it went unnoticed by Shizuru.

Natsuki sat on the floor, and the tears began to re-appear. It wasn't because of the rude gesture, it was out of jealousy. Natsuki hadn't ever felt this emotion as strong as now before. She growled at Tomoe while the tears dripped over her trembling lips, and her face had turned a deep red.

"Tomoe, can I get Natsuki her dinner?"

"No! Stay! Stay with me!"

Natsuki wobbled up to her feet with her fists clenched so hard that the skin around her knuckles began to turn a whitish color. Unfortunately, Shizuru didn't notice. Taking step by step closer to Shizuru and Tomoe, Natsuki made her prescence known with a low snarl. Tomoe smiled grimly, and hugged Shizuru tighter. The doctor finally noticed what was going to happen, and she looked pleadingly at Mai who knew the same thing. Mai came over quickly and stood behind Natsuki, ready for the attack.

"Tomoe, let go of me."

"No."

"Let go, now."

"No!"

Natsuki took another step closer, but she was almost held aback at the red-eyed glare that pierced her skin. Shizuru knew that Natsuki was a strong girl, and she knew that she could do some damage. Shizuru knew Tomoe's motive, and she knew it was wrong to do it in front of Natsuki. She either had to get Natsuki to calm down, or get free of Tomoe.

"Natsuki, calm down..." Mai said, taking a baby step toward the fuming girl.

"We don't want anyone to get hurt." Shizuru added, trying to gently push Tomoe away.

Ignoring the people coaxing her, Natsuki shook her head and put a firm hand on Tomoe. Shizuru's breath was stolen from her, and the worry for Tomoe had grown.

"Natsuki, take your hand off of her, now." Shizuru ordered, holding up a hand to stop Mai from coming any closer.

Natsuki moved her hand from Tomoe's shoulder to Shizuru's, and before the teal haired girl could think, Natsuki stepped into her on the inside of the younger girl's shoe and pinched Tomoe in the side, causing her to let go of Shizuru immediately.

"Natsuki didn't hurt Tomoe. Natsuki saved Shizuru." Natsuki said, letting her doctor go.

"You little-" Tomoe began to shout, but instead, she tried for an uppercut to Natsuki's chin.

It seemed like a direct hit, but a centimeter away from the bluenette's chin, Tomoe's hand was dormant. Shizuru's hand gripped the girl's wrist tightly, and the expression in her red eyes was not one to be favored.

"Tomoe, solitary." Shizuru said with no emotion. "Mai, take her there."

"B-but!"

"I'll take her," Mai agreed, ignoring Tomoe's protest.

Tomoe growled when Mai took her arm, and soon, they were gone.

"Natsuki, thank you."

Natsuki jumped up and grabbed Shizuru's shoulders before turning around to go find a seat. She sat next to Nao, and the group welcomed her warmly. Yukino wasn't there, and that was made known by Haruka's pacing. Shizuru sat on the other side of the table after she handed Natsuki her dinner. Tonight, the chef had served grilled chicken on rice with a side of buttered green beans. Natsuki licked her lips before diving in to devour her food.

"So, Shizuru-sensei, where did you and Natsuki go?" Midori asked, rubbing her steaming cup of decaf coffee.

Shizuru took a sip of her tea before replying, "She went to her math teacher."

"Oh..."

Everyone knew that they shouldn't talk to Shizuru or Natsuki about the math class. The warning was on Natsuki's angry face.

"But, Chie...they'll-"

"No, they won't. I have the door closed, and I asked Yukino if we could stay in our rooms for dinner."

Aoi allowed herself to be lowered onto Chie's bed. The shaggy haired teenager crawled up onto Aoi and pressed her lips upon the creamy brunette's. Moaning into the kiss, Aoi slipped her tongue into Chie's mouth as the latter had done to her. Chie ran her hands under Aoi's sweatshirt and brushed over the girl's fabric covered breasts. She earned a whimper, but as support, Chie felt Aoi's arms wrap around her waist.

"Chie, Aoi?"

Yukino.

"Uh..."

Chie jumped off of Aoi and opened the door for the doctor, who came in smiling.

"Chie, Aoi, I have some news." Yukino said before sitting at the desk that CHie drew on. "You are being moved to the DHMI."

"Huh? Which one?"

"Chie."

Chie looked at Aoi and her eyes became dark with worry. "Without Aoi?"

"Aoi can come to visit."

"Why the hell do I have to go!"

"Anger. Multiple personalities."

"Catch her, someone! Midori, go around the couch. Mai! Block the doors!"

Natsuki was sprinting around the room again. She had knocked over the bookshelf and now she hurled herself over the couch into Midori, sending them both to the ground. Before Midori could get a hand on Natsuki, the girl got away.

Shizuru sighed when she heard that Natsuki was going balistic. She picked up the phone in her office and called security. She would go down there after she finished her evaluation of Natsuki for the day.  
"Thank the lord!" Mai said when the security officers burst into the entertainment room.

They already knew what was going on, so they immediately were after Natsuki, catching her in a flash. She kicked and screamed, but one man held her to the ground, and the other strapped her into a straight jacket. Natsuki screamed. She kicked one of the guards in the face, sending him to the ground with a bloody nose. She cried, and wailed, and rolled around. She hated the straight jacket. It held her arms in a terrible position and she felt like a boulder was crushing her ribs.

One of the officers grabbed her and hauled her into her room before slamming the door behind him. Natsuki's screams could be heard all the way up the stairs where Shizuru was. She assumed the worse, so she ran into the DHMI as quick as she could. She made it to Natsuki's room, and she hustled in to see the girl kicking her toy bin around the room while she cried.

"Natsuki, honey, calm down. Let me get you out." Shizuru said.

She grabbed Natsuki and unbuckled the jacket as quickly as she could, but it was hard, for Natsuki wouldn't stop thrashing until it was off. Finally, Natsuki was free. Shizuru had shut the door before Natsuki could get out again, and now, the doctor was pushing the girl into bed. Natsuki complied, but she pulled out a book from under her pillow, handing it to Shizuru.

"Read." Natsuki demanded, snuggling into her bed.

Shizuru took the book and looked at it. It was called "Who Loves Me?". Shizuru looked at Natsuki curiously and saw pleading emerald orbs peering into her red. Shizuru nodded and sat on Natsuki's bed before opening the book.

"Okay then, Natsuki. Here we go."

The first page was the title page, and the words were modeled in little logs on a pile of grass. Shizuru turned the page, and began to read after looking at the picture which was a cute little puppy, only it was alone in a box while it rained.

"Who loves me? I'm a puppy. I'm small and young." Shizuru read, turning the page once more to see a cat with an empty food bowl. "Who loves me? I'm a cat. No one feeds me. I'm hungry."

Another page was turned, and a picture of a turtle shell appeared. "Who loves me? I'm a turtle. I'm scared and alone, so I hide."

Shizuru looked at Natsuki whose eyes were closed before continuing onward. She turned the page to see that the puppy, cat and turtle were sitting together with smiled on their faces. "Who loves me? My friends. I love my friends. Who loves you?"

Fujino decided to read the last page out of curiosity, not for Natsuki's comfort, for the bluenette was fast asleep. Shizuru turned the page and saw something that made her tear up. Natsuki had drawn a picture of herself being held by the doctor herself. Natsuki was smiling, and so was Shizuru. The teenager had even drew a heart around the two of them. Finally, Shizuru looked at the words and read them aloud. "Who loves Natsuki? 'Zuru loves Natsuki, and Natsuki loves 'Zuru."


	7. Chapter 7

"Yes, this is Shizuru."

-Hello, Fujino-san, how are you today?-

"I'm wonderful, and I have a question for you."

-A question? Well, ask it, then.-

Shizuru took a deep breath before speaking again, "It's about Natsuki. I was wondering if she could come and live with me for a while."

-For a while?- Mrs. Kuga asked.

"A few years..."

-Oh, my! A few years?-

"Yes. She is getting better, and I would continue to doctor her, and you could visit as much as you liked."

-I... Well, if it's for her health, then yes.-

Natsuki stirred in her bed, opening her eyes to a new day. She rubbed the crust out of her eye corners, and she slipped out of bed to leave, finding that the door was unlocked. She was very tired, so she didn't sprint out of the room. She walked slowly to the cafeteria, where everyone was, everyone except Shizuru.

Arika was back, and she waved at Natsuki happily, yelling that she got the latter's food for her. Natsuki ran to Arika an hugged her before she sat down.

"Natsuki, I feel better now! I am happy and stuff, and Nina, Nina-chan is going to come get me at the end of the month! I'm going to spend a week with her at her school!"

Natsuki clapped and grabbed her fork, dipping it into a fruit salad. Arika mimicked Natsuki again, but they were stopped, for Natsuki had been slapped on the shoulder. The cobalt haired girl choked on her fruit and let out a small yelp before turning around to see Tomoe.

Natsuki smiled and waved, but she got a glare in return.

Tomoe got so close to Natsuki that she was nearly nibbling on the girl's ear. "You are so stupid. I will kill you if you ever take my Onee-sama away from me again."

"Why?" Arika asked, overhearing the turquoise haired girl.

"Stay out of it!" Tomoe barked before turning back to Natsuki.

"I'm sorry if Natsuki upset you." Natsuki replied to Tomoe.

Tomoe kicked Natsuki in the shin, and surprisingly, the latter didn't cry. Instead, she got up with her tray and looked to Arika saying, "Let's go somewhere else Arika."

Arika nodded and began to stand back up with her tray before walking with Natsuki. Tomoe growled and grabbed Natsuki's shoulder, twisting their girl around. Tomoe gave Natsuki's tray an uppercut, sending food all over Natsuki's upper body.

"I was going to eat that." Natsuki said, feeling her eyes start to water.

"I don't care about what you want!" Tomoe screamed, making Midori notice what was going on.

Unaware, Tomoe and Natsuki had no idea that Midori had gone to get Mai.

"Tomoe, why are you so mean! You are selfish, and rude, and you only care about yourself! That's why Shizuru-onee-sama hates you!" Arika snapped.

Tomoe rushed up to Arika and pushed her on the ground before lifting her leg up to kick Natsuki in the back of the head. Natsuki was pushed to the floor and she saw stars, but she was still able to get back up. Tomoe kicked Natsuki in the chin, sending the girl to the floor again.

"Tomoe, stop it now!" Mai shouted.

She grabbed Tomoe's arm and tugged her away with a struggle while Midori and Arika ran to Natsuki.

"Are you alright?" Midori asked, helping Natsuki back onto the bench.

"Natsuki is okay."

"Oh, hey, I forgot to tell you guys, the doctor's are having an important meeting today, but we have to take showers first. Natsuki, do you want to come with me?"

"Okay."

The three of them walked to the showers, happy to find that it was empty. Midori turned the water on for all of them, and they got into the showers with ease after stripping off their uniforms. Over the last month, Natsuki became more comfortable with taking showers. She was sitting under the warm water with her mouth open, letting the liquid trickle down her throat.

"Natsuki, make sure you clean yourself." Midori warned, rubbing her arm with soap.

Natsuki cocked her head to the right before looking up to the edge of the shower where a bottle of Shampoo and a bar of soap resided. She reached up and grabbed the bottle before squirting the sudsy pink liquid over her head, and she threw it aside while she shoved her head under the water.

"Natsuki is my best friend!" Arika shouted before she jumped into the shower with Natsuki.

"You guys! You're both naked! Have some dignity!" Midori said.

"Natsuki Kuga. Age sixteen, in the DHMI for severe autism, OCD, and ADHD, also, best friend of me, Arika Yumemiya!"

Natsuki ran out into the entertainment center to hop into her usual seat. She was accompanied by Arika who somehow managed to squeeze into the chair as well. The chairs were all set up, and they were being filled by the other patients that occupied the DHMI.

Finally, after about ten minutes, the doctors came out. Natsuki saw Yukino and Shizuru, but Shizuru was holding Tomoe's hand, and that made Natsuki upset.

"Onee-sama..." Tomoe said to Shizuru, who sat down in her chair.

Shizuru took both of Tomoe's hands and looked into the girl's eyes. "Behave, alright?"

"Okay," Tomoe said before running to her seat.

Shizuru looked at her clipboard and scanned the area to make sure everyone was there, and they were. She started to speak.

"Since everyone is here, I'll start with a game." Shizuru decided out loud. "I'm going to say a word, and then we are going to go around the circle and say words. For example, my word is 'once', now, Yukino is going to say a word."

"Upon."

"Eventually it becomes a story. Everyone has to participate, and let's try and make a really good story. Let's start with Midori."

Midori smiled, "Soon."

Nao was sitting next to her. "we."

"Ran!" Haruka Shouted, making Yukino giggle.

"To." Tomoe added.

"The."

It was Natsuki's turn. "train."

"Okay, so the first sentence was: Soon, we went to the train." Shizuru reviewed. "Let's make sentences now. So, instead of one word, say an entire sentence."

"We all ran to the train." Yukino began.

"We almost didn't make the time."

"So...we...sprinted."

"We missed the train but Haruka, that's me, stopped it before it could go too far, so we got on."

"The train was large and steam puffed through the pipe of the conducting car."

"Stop," Shizuru interrupted. "Girls, did you notice anything different about Tomoe's sentence?"

The silence ensued until Haruka hopped out of her chair screaming, "My sentence deserves credit!"

Yukino shot Haruka a warning look, and the girl sat down.

Nao raised her hand. "She used descriptive language and she also used two prepositional phrases that started with 'through' and 'of'."

"Very good, Nao." Shizuru said, throwing a sucker into Nao's lap.

"I want candy!" Arika shouted.

Shizuru laughed and leaned back into her chair. "You'll get candy, but let's finish the story first. It's Arika's turn."

"The inside of the train was nice and pretty."

"They had puppies on the wallpaper."

Shizuru started the next round. "We were assigned to car four in room b, so we all went there."

"We rode the train until we reached the city."

"Out of the window the Leaning Tower of Pisa could be seen as sun glinted on the bright colors of the structure."

"Nao wondered," Nao began in third person, "why people call it the Leaning Tower of Pisa instead of the Leaning Tower of Pizza."

Everyone chuckled.

"Hey! That was my turn!" Haruka barked.

"Actually, it's my turn." Midori interjected. "The train ride was over and we all entered Europe with our cameras ready."

"The train blew up and everyone died. The end." Haruka said, grumbling under her breath.

Natsuki burst out into laughter, followed by Arika. Shizuru rubbed her temples with her fingers and smiled. Yukino was chuckling a little bit as well.

"I believe the game is over." Shizuru said. "Let's move on."

Nao coughed and closed her eyes, waiting for the group to start.

"I want you to answer this question. What do people with mental issues have that other people don't? Now, before you answer, think about the question. Natsuki has these issues, so what does she have that lot's of people don't?" Shizuru asked, looking at Natsuki who was looking down the back of Arika's shirt.

"A big mouth." Nao said under her breath, earning a hiss from Midori.

"I want you to get into groups. Mai, please go with Natsuki and Arika. Tomoe, Nao, Midori, you will go with Yukino. Haruka, and our new patient, who just arrived, will come with me." Shizuru said.

The new patient had in fact arrived. She had shaggy hair and she was tall and handsome. Now she was standing next to Mai whose arm was firmly wrapped around the girl's shoulder.

"I will introduce her to you after we finish, but I want everyone to be friendly and kind or there will be consequences. Okay, separate to your groups."

Mai just had to walk over to the chair where Natsuki and Arika were sitting on each other. She sat down on the floor and smiled at the two of them who paid attention to her after they had pushed each other to get room.

"Um, guys, what do you think?" Mai said.

"I think lot's of things." Arika said.

Mai shook her head. "Answer this for me. What does Natsuki have that most people don't?"

"Natsuki has blue hair."

"I do not!"

Mai chuckled. "Natsuki, you do have blue hair."

"Okay."

Soon the groups had discussed the question and now they were back in the circle. Shizuru was smiling, and the new patient was sitting next to Haruka on the floor.

"Let's see. Who wants to go first?"

"Arika does." The latter said, standing up after popping out of Natsuki's chair.

"Very well, go ahead."

"People like Natsuki have the ability to take their souls away from the crime and pain of the real world and put it into their own dimension which was made specifically for them."

"People, this is Chie." Yukino said.

"Where's Aoi?" The girl whined.

"Oh boy."

"I've got some news. To get down to the point, and to end this meeting with a happy note, next week we are all going to Disney World."

The room erupted in excitement.

"Alright. Let's be good in here and use inside voices. Alright? Come on in, you guys aren't in trouble." Shizuru cooed, inviting the group into her office.

Natsuki was the first one in, but instead of sitting in a chair, she stumbled to the floor with Arika following her. Nao and Tomoe took the chairs in front of Shizuru's desk, and Chie grunted before leaning on the door. Shizuru was in her seat before her desk, and she pulled out a pad of paper.

"First of all, I will explain the trip. We are going to leave on Monday in the morning, and we will drive until we get there. We are going to stay at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, and there we will get settled and see what time it is. Then, we will leave on Saturday to come back home."

"Can Natsuki come?"

"Yes, Natsuki! You dunderhead!" Nao barked.  
"Nao, don't act up." Shizuru ordered sternly. "I made individual packing lists for you. You may start to pack, but you will find that you may not have all of the things you will need. Hence the fact that w are going shopping this coming Sunday to get you summer clothes."

Natsuki had decided to stay with Shizuru during lunch. She had food brought to the latter's office, and now, Natsuki was staring out the window with a spoon in her mouth. She just finished her soup, but she was still hungry so she sucked on the spoon.

"Natsuki, come here please." Shizuru called.

Natsuki crawled over to Shizuru and rested her head on the desk where her doctor was working. Shizuru was writing on a piece of paper, and she was creating the room assignments for Disney.

"Who do you want to be in your room?" Shizuru asked.

"Arika."

"Okay then. You will be in a room with Arika and Midori. Unless we change some things."

Shizuru scribbled on her paper and let Natsuki crawl into her lap. Natsuki wrapped her arms around Shizuru's waist and allowed herself to fall into a daydream. Shizuru let Natsuki lay on her for a very long time. They had even decided to stay in the office during dinner.

Natsuki didn't realize it, but Shizuru had carried the cobalt haired girl back to her room before tucking her in and retiring for the night.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N- This chapter contains material that may be innapropriate for readers under the age of 17. Please read at your own discretion and please feel free to skip over the graphic scene depicted in this chapter. Thanks! Enjoy!

The bus ride to the thrift store was a long one. Natsuki was daydreaming again, but she was happy when she was allowed to get up and out of the bus to go get clothes for disney world.

Shizuru helped Natsuki pick the clothes out, and it was a tiring process. They managed, but Natsuki just dropped to sleep when they returned to the hospital.

Tommorow was the big day. Shizuru was looking forward to it, for that was the time that she would tell Natsuki about the call with Mrs. Kuga. Shizuru planned on still working at the hospital, but she would buy a house and live on her own with Natsuki instead of staying at the asylum. Natsuki would have to stay at the hospital until she was ready, but Shizuru was willing to wait.

Soon it was the early morning, and the bus arrived at five. While the patients were still sleeping, Shizuru, Yukino, Yukariko, Fumi and Mai made sure that the luggage they owned was put on the bus, as well as medical supplies and coolers filled with snacks for the long drive from Michigan to Florida.

Because Yukino's other section was coming to the park, they had to make sure that there was enough room for all of the luggage. Yukino was speaking to the bus driver while Mai and Shizuru went to get the group of patients from their rooms. Mai got Yukino's section, and Shizuru went to get her own.

Shizuru pressed the power button that turned on all of the lights in the room and used the unlocking button to auto-unlock the doors. The few patients that were already awake consisted of Chie, Midori, and Nao. The others, Natsuki, Arika, Tomoe, and Haruka were still asleep.

"Girls, get up! It's time to go! Get your luggage and make sure you stay close." Shizuru said.

Tomoe was up and ready first, and she was next to Shizuru way before the other patients were. Natsuki and Arika took the longest, but they soon trudged out of their rooms and began to follow Shizuru to the elevator.

"Natsuki, come here, please." Shizuru added, remembering that Natsuki was terrified of elevators.  
Natsuki listened and dragged her suitcase over everyone else's before she pressed her face into Shizuru's chest.

"Midori, can you press the level one button?"

"Yeah."

When the elevator started to move, Natsuki screamed as loud as she could. Shizuru tried to calm her down, seeing as the other patients were cringing with their hands clasped over their ears. Of course, Arika, who always copied Natsuki, started screaming as well.

Shizuru sighed and plugged her ears until the elevator's descent was over, and quickly, Natsuki jumped out of the elevator and stopped screaming.

"Natsuki! No screaming!" Shizuru barked, allowing Tomoe to curl up in her embrace.

Arika opened her mouth to scream.

"You too."

"Nao and I are going to the bus." Midori grumbled, dragging her suitcase out of the hospital.

Haruka followed, leaving Arika, Natsuki, Tomoe and Shizuru still in the building. Shizuru had already signed the group out of the hospital while she was putting her own luggage into the bus.

"Natsuki wants food!"

"Arika wants food!"

"I don't understand why you butt heads speak in third person."

Shizuru bopped Tomoe on the head. "Be nice."

Soon, everyone was settled on the bus. Natsuki was sitting by Arika in the back, and while Yukino was taking attendance, Natsuki noticed that Takeda was staring at her.

"Hi, Natsuki." He said.

Natsuki hissed at him and waved her hand back and forth in front of his face like she was shooing him away.

"Natsuki?"

Natsuki turned back to Arika, unaware that her name was being called.

"Natsuki Kuga."

Still ignoring the call, Natsuki devised a game in her head, but before she was able to explain it, she was tapped on the shoulder by a frowning Mai.

"Natsuki Kuga is here." Mai said aloud, staring angrily at the bluenette.

Natsuki ignored her, but soon, Mai left, so Natsuki began to explain her game to Arika while the bus started moving. "How about we pretend that we are secret agents that snuck onto an enemy transportation system? Shizuru can be the villain that we need to interrogate."

"I want to!" Arika said happily.

Natsuki scanned the area. Shizuru was sitting in the front. The bluenette motioned to Arika that she would be leaving to go investigate. Natsuki quietly crawled under the seats, surprisingly unnoticed by the other patients, until she saw Shizuru's legs. Sticking her head out into the aisle, Natsuki mouthed a direction to Arika.

Arika got the message and created a diversion. "There's a snake in the bus!"

Everyone screamed.

"I'm kidding!"

"Arika!" Mai said sternly. "Come sit with me, now."

Arika nodded but the smile on her face went around unnoticed. Natsuki was ready. She poked Shizuru's leg, making the doctor look at her feet. No one was there. She brushed it off, but when Natsuki did it again, Shizuru looked under the bench to see Natsuki smiling grimly.

"Natsuki-"

"Agent Kuga!" Natsuki barked, happily priding herself when the look on Shizuru's face looked defeated.

"Agent...Kuga?"

"I'm here to get a message to you, so that you can give it to your boss. Tell him that Agent Yumemiya and Agent Kuga know what he's doing, and he won't get away with it!"

Shizuru decided to play along. "Come up here, and I'll give you a pen and paper to send him the message."

Natsuki smirked and crawled out from under the seat to sit next to Shizuru. She looked at the bubuzuke woman with anticipation. When the woman reached into her bag and pulled out what wasn't a pen and a piece of paper, Natsuki hissed.

"Never underestimate your opponent, dear agent." Shizuru said.

The object was a little marble.

"This will make you forget what you came here for, and you will be mine."

Natsuki shook her head.

"Ara, Agent Kuga is scared?"

"I'm never scared."

"Then say goodbye."

Shizuru held the marble to Natsuki's forehead, and watched as the patient pretended that her memories and everything she knew disappeared. When the doctor removed the marble, Natsuki fell face first into the woman's lap.

In a matter of seconds, Arika was grabbing Shizuru's shirt collar.

"You give her back!"

"Ah, Agent Yumemiya, isn't it?"

"Sorry, Shizuru." Mai said, grabbing Arika's arm and pulling her back to the seat.

"You'll pay!"

Five hours later, Natsuki was sitting next to Midori, learning how to tie her shoes. Midori was very smart, so she decided to take a very long time to teach Natsuki. The girl finally got it, but it took her an hour. Soon, she ran up to Shizuru to show her that she was able to tie her shoes.

"Good girl!" Shizuru said.

"Ah! Ah! Look..." Natsuki said, pointing into the aisle where a bunch of patients were playing cards.

"You want to watch?" Shizuru said, picking Natsuki up and carrying her to the group so that she could see better.

Shizuru pointed at the card game and explained it carefully to Natsuki who listened with full focus. She reached down and touched one of the cards, but then she returned to rest her head on her doctor's shoulder.

After a while, the group had stopped at a rest area. Natsuki, Mai, Arika, Tomoe, Chie, and Aoi were the last people to enter the building. Mai was the chaperone, so the group wouldn't catch some trouble.

"Mai! Mai! Mai!"

Natsuki hopped up and down before the retired officer.

"What, Natsuki?"

"Can I have chocolate, please?"

Mai shook her head and looked to the entrance of the women's bathroom. Natsuki had already used it, and now she was hungry.

"Please?"

"What will you do for me if I buy you a candy bar?"

"I'll draw you a picture."

"Will you behave?"

"Yes!"

While she was finishing the last bit of her chocolate bar, Natsuki heard some moaning sounds in the seat behind her. The bus was relatively quiet, for most of the people were sleeping, but that made the noises from the back even more recognizing.

Natsuki discarded her wrapper and peeked around the corner of her seat to see Miya on Tomoe's lap. Tomoe had an evil grin on her face as she secured the struggling Miya around her waist. Tomoe's hand was down the front of Miya's skirt, and a little bit of liquid was dripping down her leg.

Natsuki ran up to the front of the bus where Shizuru was sitting. Grabbing her arm, Natsuki pulled Shizuru to Tomoe and Miya. It took Shizuru a second to notice what was going on, but she was furious.

"Tomoe Marguerite." Shizuru said between gritted teeth.  
Tomoe quickly pulled out and untangled herself from Miya before looking up to a steaming Shizuru. Tomoe gulped and pushed Miya to the side, before averting her gaze from Shizuru.

"Mai?" Shizuru said loudly, getting the woman's attention.

"What's going on?"

Shizuru crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head before answering, "Take Tomoe to the front. She is not to talk or move."

"Alright then." Mai grabbed Tomoe's arm and tugged her away, letting Shizuru take care of Miya.  
Bending down to the girl's level, Shizuru smiled and pulled Miya into a deep hug. There, Miya cried softly into Shizuru's shoulder.

"It'll be okay. I'll clean you up." Shizuru cooed, gesturing for Natsuki to move away.

When they were alone, Shizuru took Miya to the very back seat of the bus where it was empty. After setting Miya down, Shizuru went to the front but returned with a first aid kit. Apparently Tomoe had assaulted Miya so hard that she was bleeding.

"Now, If you feel any discomfort, I want you to tell me." Shizuru said.

Moving into the space between the occupied seat in front of her and the back of the other behind, Shizuru moved Miya to a position that would be easily accessible.

"Can you unzip your skirt for me?"

Miya obeyed and unzipped her skirt allowing Shizuru to pull it to her ankles. Then, Shizuru gently pulled Miya's underwear away and took a look at the damage Tomoe had caused. Blood was trickling over the entrance to Miya, and the flesh inside was broken and torn.

"You were a virgin." Shizuru whispered.

Shizuru shook her head and grabbed a gauze pad from the kit. She pressed it against Miya's womanhood and let the blood soak up before removing it. Then, the doctor took a clean wipe from the box and stroked it gently from the top to the bottom of the affected area.

"Are you alright?"

Miya shook her head and closed her eyes, waiting for Shizuru to continue.

Shizuru finally took one more thing from the first aid kit. It was a pad, and it was now stuck to Miya's underwear.

"This will soak up any excess blood. All you have to do it relax." Shizuru said, pulling the girl's clothing back into place before closing the medical box.

Shizuru smiled at Miya before walking to the front to return the kit and grab a blanket and a soda. Miya looked at Shizuru curiously when the doctor was in front of her again, but she wasn't worried. Taking the blanket, Shizuru draped it over Miya's body and made sure that all of the girl's skin was covered besides her face. Then, she handed Miya the soda, Coca-Cola, and then patted the girl's head.

"I want you to relax and take a nap. It'll be alright. If you need anything, come up to the front where I am."

Miya nodded, and Shizuru left.

Happy to be greeted by Natsuki, Shizuru sat next to the latter and pulled her close. Natsuki grinned and snuggled up to Shizuru, feeling the warmth of the woman radiate over her.

"Natsuki?"

"Wha?"

Shizuru giggled and placed Natsuki on her lap before leaning against the window. She reached into her bag and presented a long blanket that covered her and Natsuki together. Purring, Natsuki nuzzled closer to Shizuru who was cuddling her.

"I was wondering, would you like to spend some time with me separate from the group?"

"Yah!"

"Sh, Natsuki let's keep quiet."

"Sorry."

Shizuru smiled and closed her eyes, waiting for Natsuki to follow suit, which she did.

A nap later, Shizuru awoke and saw that Natsuki was still sleeping in her grasp. Shizuru saw Yukino across the aisle with Haruka who was pressed up against the window looking outside.

"Shizuru, we're going to stop for lunch in about ten minutes, shall I get everyone ready?"

"Sure, Yukino, I'll wake Natsuki."

Yukino nodded and stood up, pausing when Haruka grabbed the hem of her pants.

"Haruka, I'm not leaving you."

Haruka frowned and sat back in her seat to pout while Yukino got the attention of everyone.

"Alright, we will be stopping in ten minutes for lunch. I want you all to be on your best behavior seeing as this is a public area. Please find a buddy and stay with them so you don't get lost."

Shizuru ignored the speech now that Natsuki was starting to stir. Soon, the girl's eyes opened and a yawn escaped her mouth.

"Hey, sleepy." Shizuru greeted, moving a strand of hair away from Natsuki's face.

Natsuki smiled, and snuggled to her doctor, where she waited until the bus stopped at a McDonald's.  
In a matter of minutes, Yukino and Shizuru had managed to get everyone in a seat. They were going to order the food while the patients sat and waited. Unfortunately people were staring at the strange behavior radiating from the group.

Natsuki was the one that stood out the most. She was rocking back and forth again, and she whistled while shaking her hands in the air. Midori was helping the doctor's order the food while Mai watched over the group.

"Arika, why don't you come and sit by me?" Mai said, patting the empty seat next to her.

"I want to sit with Natsuki!" Arika shouted, attracting more attention.

"Okay, shh. You can sit by Natsuki."

The only patient that was not with the cluster of people was Miya. She was close to Shizuru, and her hand was curled around Shizuru's. Shizuru decided that Miya would be monitored during lunch, just is case Tomoe tried anything. Clutching the blanket that Shizuru had given her, Miya looked up nervously at the woman who held her hand.

"I'm going to buy you a treat. What would you like?"

Miya smiled up at Shizuru and pointed at a McFlurry on the menu board. Then, she made a 'V' with her hand, indicating that she wanted a vanilla.

"Alright then, I'll get you one." Shizuru said, stepping up to the counter to order.  
When it was ready, Shizuru took the cup and handed it to Miya who jumped up in happiness.

"You eat all of that, okay? Enjoy yourself." Shizuru said before she went to distribute the food the the patients.

Shizuru sat next to Natsuki across from Mai and Tomoe. Arika and Midori were next to each other, while Natsuki was happy that the Yumemiya sat on her other side. Shizuru allowed Natsuki to slip into her grasp.

"You should eat Natsuki."

Miya wanted to sit next to Shizuru, but the doctor thought it would be a bad idea for her to be close to Tomoe. Still, Miya sat on the other side of Shizuru and gripped her arm. The woman smiled weakly and shook free of her patients to get a sip of her tea.

Natsuki finally grabbed her cheeseburger and brought it to her lips, taking an alligator's bite out of the meat. In a matter of seconds, the burger was gone, and the cobalt haired girl was sucking down her french fries.

"Tomoe, we need to talk." Shizuru said, feeling Miya's grip tighten again.

Tomoe looked sadly at Shizuru, but then grimly at Miya.

"You raped her. You did the exact same thing that the man did to you."

"I did not!"

"Hey, I will talk, you will listen." Shizuru sneered. "She was a virgin. You took that from her. You should be arrested for this, but since you are a part of the hospital you will be put in solitary for three weeks."

"But!"

"Hush. Enjoy the time you have here. Your punishment starts when we return." Shizuru said. "I will be notifying Miya's parents as well as your aunt."

"Look! It's Cinderella's Castle! I can see it!" Arika shouted, running to the other side of the bus to get a better look.

The bus almost tipped over, for the kids went to the one side of the bus and the weight was pulling the vehicle over. When they realized this, they all ran back to their original seats.

"Shizuru! Shizuru! Look... See?" Natsuki said, pulling on Fujino's arm.  
"I see. We will get to see the castle tomorrow. We have to get checked in and settled first, then we will swim until bedtime."

"But I want to see Mickey!"

"You'll see Mickey."

"Everyone, listen up please!" It was Yukino. "We have obviously arrived. It is about two thirty, so we are going to check in and show you to the rooms. Then we will stay at the hotel until tomorrow morning, then we will go to Magic Kingdom. Listen carefully, I'm going to put you into groups, and you will go to your leader when we get to the Animal Kingdom Lodge."

Everyone listened carefully.

"Group one will be lead by Miss Fumi. Those who shall go with her are Nagi and Takeda. Group two, lead by Yukariko, includes Midori and Nao. Group number three will be Chie, Aoi, and Tomoe. Shizuru's group will have Miya, Arika, and Natsuki. The final group, number five, will go with me. So Shiho and Haruka are under my supervision. Be on your best behavior. Stay with your leader. We don't want you to get lost."

Soon the bus stopped and everyone and their luggage were ready to check in. The groups were working out very well, and it was time to check everyone in. Shizuru handled that while Natsuki and Arika greeted Miya.

"I'm Natsuki!"

"Arika!"

"U-um...I'm Miya."

When they turned around, they saw the lodge. It was amazing. In the middle of the lobby was a bunch of separate spaces marked by couches and African heirlooms, and they all had their own TV. To the right side was a staircase that led to the restaurant, and on the left side was the check in area. In the right hand corner there was a gift shop. Above, were the different rooms. There were bridges leading from one side of the room to another, and the decor was traditional African.

"Wow!"

"Natsuki, bring the girls over here, my group is ready." Shizuru called.

They girl's obeyed and followed Shizuru to the elevator and stepped inside where they were led to the fourth floor. For once, Natsuki didn't scream. Shizuru took them to their room, and she unlocked the door, leading them to the living space.

When all were in, Shizuru shut the door. A small bathroom was on the right, and in the main area were two bunk beads and a queen sized bed. A lamp stand between the objects held the TV remote and a clock. Finally, behind a small table on the left, was a porch concealed by blinds decorated with the Lion King characters.

"Okay everyone, let's get settled." Shizuru said, setting her bag of luggage on the big bed. "You kids will get the bunk beads. Arika and Natsuki I want you on the bottom. Miya I trust you to be safe on the top bunk, okay?"

Miya nodded, a little flustered after Natsuki and Arika threw their bags to the side and curled up on the beds they were assigned. Shizuru frowned and stopped them.

"Okay, let's get ready. You all have your swimsuits?"

A nod.

"Get dressed, and wear a pair of shorts over your suit." ordered Shizuru. "Who's ready to have some fun?"


	9. Chapter 9

"Why did Shizuru take Natsuki separately after dinner?" Natsuki asked, curling her fingers around Shizuru's hand.

"I wanted to show you the animals." Shizuru answered, opening the door for Natsuki.

They both stepped outside, walking toward the huge animal enclosure that surrounded the hotel.

"Animal! Look!" Natsuki exclaimed, shouting loudly while jumping up and down; she pointed her finger to the animal, a zebra.

Other people were in front of the fence, sharing the observation. They looked at Natsuki and watched her odd behavior. She was a teenager acting like a two year old. One of them, a young girl, about five, slipped away from her mother, who felt uneasy with the bluenette close to her daughter, and moved up to Natsuki.

Pointing at the cobalt haired girl, the child spoke, "What's wrong with you?"

The mother heard and immediately turned around. Swiftly approaching her child with worry, she noticed the anger on Shizuru's face and the cobalt-haired girl fell to her knees in front of the girl who opposed her.

The child spoke again, "Why are you so weird? Are you sick?"

Natsuki wiggled her ears and smiled before answering, "Why are you so normal? Are you sick?"

The child laughed and sat down before Natsuki. "You are funny."

"You are small." Natsuki retorted.

Shizuru and the mother watched as Natsuki made an interaction with one who had insulted her.  
Finally, the mother interrupted. "I'm so sorry. Please forgive me. I-"

"Natsuki likes your little person." Natsuki replied, smiling.

"Natsuki, honey, let's go look at the animals, okay?" Shizuru said, nodding at the woman before walking away, hoping that Natsuki was following.

"Bye, little person." Natsuki said before making her way to Shizuru.

Natsuki and Shizuru walked around the enclosure for quite a while. Enjoying the animals, Natsuki was sad that she had to go back to the hotel room after Shizuru had gotten a call that they had missed dinner and swimming. So Shizuru had gotten Natsuki a Mickey Mouse Cookie sandwich for dinner, and the latter was allowed to eat it on the way back to their rooms.

Miya was already sleeping, but Arika was sitting on her bed, nervously shaking in anticipation for Natsuki's arrival. Shizuru let Natsuki go in first only to be tackled, but Shizuru had other things to worry about. She wondered why her colleagues had left Miya and Arika in the room alone.

"Natsuki, Arika, keep it quiet, Miya is sleeping." Shizuru whispered, motioning for the patients to follow her into the bathroom.

Shizuru gently let the door of the bathroom shut, and she sat down with her back leaning on the wall. Happily, Natsuki and Arika followed suit, and they sat down.

"Remember, keep it down." Reminded Shizuru. "I want to be in here when you to clean up, because I know Natsuki has a little resistance."

"I don't want to take a shower." Natsuki complained.

"That's why Arika is going to go first." Shizuru replied.

Arika obeyed and jumped into the shower, pulled the curtain over for privacy, threw her clothes into the bathroom, and turned on the water.

"Five minutes." Shizuru stated to Arika.

Natsuki and Shizuru were quiet, but the patient crawled into the arms of her doctor, resting her head on the woman's chest.

"Natsuki, you don't run away tommorow, okay?" Shizuru said.

"Okay, Zuru'."

"That's my girl."

When the sun's heat radiated from the open curtain's of the hotel room, Shizuru opened her eyes to see that Arika, Miya, and Natsuki were all in the room, but the doctor was a little shocked at the greeting she got.

Natsuki and Miya were still asleep, but Arika was sitting on Shizuru's bed. She was sitting like a dog, and her tongue hung out of her mouth. Arika's eyes were wide open, and her mouth was red. Shizuru looked at the foot of her bed to see a pair of her socks ripped up under Arika's hand. The red on Arika's mouth was from yanking and pulling at the fabric with her teeth.

"Arika." Shizuru said, moving out of bed. "Sit."

Shizuru patted a chair at the small table next to the TV and smiled when Arika sat in it. "Stay in that chair. Do you understand? You can't defile people's property like that."

Shizuru was the first one ready, and she allowed Arika to get ready with her while the other patients in the room slept. Soon, however, Natsuki and Miya had to be woken up.

"Arika, how about you wake them up, okay?"

"WAKE UP!" Arika screamed, waking Natsuki and Miya.

Natsuki fell out of her bed, and Miya shot up in terror.

"Okay, no. Arika, let's not yell." Shizuru said. "Alright girls. Let's get ready. Miya, you can use the bathroom first. Natsuki, I want you to pick out your outfit for today."

While Arika watched the "Disney Must-Do's", Miya and Natsuki prepared for the day. Natsuki pulled out a t-shirt, a pair of shorts, and black sandals. The shirt was green with a bug-eyed frog on a lily pad, and the shorts were light brown and had pockets. Natsuki needed to have help with strapping her sandals, and soon, she was ready for the bathroom. Miya and Natsuki switched, and Shizuru took this time to comfort Miya. Taking the girl into her lap on the main bed, Shizuru reached to the lamp stand where a hairbrush began to brush Miya's silky tresses while she talked with the child.

"Good morning, sweetie. Did you sleep well?" Shizuru asked, earning a nod.

Later, Shizuru took her group to the "Mara" a restaurant next to the pool. She ordered a Mickey Waffle for Natsuki, Miya, and Arika, and she complemented herself with a bottle of green tea.

When breakfast was over, the group met up with the others to talk about the daily plan. All of the groups were going to Magic Kingdom, but they were allowed to separate by groups. If someone got lost, they were to go find a worker and stay with them until they were found. Together, they mounted the bus with a few stranger families.

-Hello everyone, and welcome to the Walt Disney World Transportation System. We will be making stops at Magic Kingdom. Sit back, relax, and let us do the driving.-

Natsuki started to cry when the bus started to "talk", and Shizuru was quick to comfort her. She pulled Natsuki into her grasp and smoothed down the girl's hair.

"I'm scared!" Natsuki whimpered, tightening her grip around Shizuru.

"Hey kid, It's alright. The bus is a nice bus." The driver said, looking quickly at Natsuki out of the corner of her eye.

The bus driver was a plump woman with orange curly hair, and her eyes were a bright green. Shizuru smiled at the driver and held onto the loop above her, for she had to keep her and Natsuki safe because the bus was so crowded that they had to stand; it didn't help that they were the last people on the bus.

"He's scary!" Natsuki replied, turning her red face to the driver who was looking at the road.

"He doesn't mean to be scary. It's alright." The woman had a thick Southern accent, and her cheeks were as rosy as a red poppy. "Where ya'll from?"

Shizuru added, "We're from Michigan. The Fuuka Mental Institution."

"So, you're a doc'?"

"Yes. I am. I appreciate your help. She's not used to these things." Shizuru gestured to Natsuki.

"Ah, the girl. It's not a problem. My cousin's like her, your patient there. What's her name?"

"Natsuki." Shizuru answered.

"Well then, Natsuki, you are very lucky to be a special and gifted girl. Most people don't realize how wonderful people like you are. It's a shame."

Natsuki stared at the driver blankly before rubbing the tears out of her eyes.

"Natsuki, honey, what do you say?" Shizuru asked, looking at the girl.

"Thank you?"

"There you go." Shizuru replied, kissing Natsuki's head.

The bus driver laughed, "You're welcome. Just a warning, kiddo, all of the busses here talk, but they are very nice."

"Why do they talk?" Natsuki asked.

"My boss, Mr. Mouse, wants ya'll to feel welcomed, so the busses help."

"Your boss is Mickey!" Natsuki shouted.

"Yup. I'll tell him you're coming."

Natsuki turned to Shizuru and smiled. "She works for Mickey!"

Shizuru was very relieved that the bus driver was so kind. The driver telling Natsuki that she worked for Mickey warmed Shizuru's heart for two reasons. Natsuki had an imagination and she loved Mickey, but also, Mickey wasn't real, and unlike someone else, the driver kept that a secret. Natsuki was a teenager, and most people would think she already knew about the workers that stood in the costumes.

"Thank you." Shizuru said, receiving a nod.

-We are now entering Disney's Magic Kingdom, please watch your head and step as you disembark, and please take small children by the hand. Enjoy your day at the Magic Kingdom-

Before Natsuki and Shizuru were able to step off of the bus, the driver handed Natsuki an autograph book so she could have Mickey's signature.

They gathered to the side of the walkway leading up to the entrance to make sure that the headcount was correct. It was, and Shizuru reminded her group of the rules before they left the rest of the patients and doctors.

"Okay kids. Here." Shizuru offered, reaching into her bag to pull out the necklaces that said 'Be nice to me! I'm from Fuuka Mental Institution!' and handed them to her group. "Never, ever, take this off. If you get lost, go to a worker, and they will find contact information on the back of this. I'll come and find you. This is your safety. Do not take it off."

"What if-"

"No what ifs. It's my job to keep you safe, and you have to keep that on. Hopefully you won't get lost. On that note, kids, let's go get our bags checked, and we'll have some fun!"

Through the bag check, Natsuki held Arika's hand and Miya was staying close to Shizuru. People looked at them funny, but soon they saw the tag around their necks.

Natsuki was next in line. Her bag was small, and it only carried a water bottle, sunglasses, an extra bottle of sunscreen, and Natsuki's ticket/hotel key. When the police officer tried to see Natsuki's bag, the girl hissed and yanked the bag away.

"Relax, I'm going to give it back."

Shizuru smiled at Natsuki, indicating that it was okay, and she gave her bag to the officer. After the bags were safe, the tickets let the group into the wonders of the Magic Kingdom. Natsuki, as well as the other kids were ecstatic. They were finally here. Finally in Disney World.

"Look! It's the castle! I want to meet Cinderella!"

"No! Goofy and Pluto are right there!"

"I wanna see Tigger!"

"Woah. Calm down. Natsuki, Arika, please stay close." Shizuru said, pulling the group out of the entrance tunnel that led to the beginning of Main Street, USA. Along the road, various old style shops filled with people were modernized on the inside. All of this led you over a bridge, where Cinderella's Castle stood tall and mighty.

The top point of the castle was high in the air, and it led down to the main body of the castle, where more points, not nearly as high, resided. Along the other points, flags were ruffling in the wind, adding to the castle's intimate beauty. At the window of the area next to the tallest tower, an elegantly white balcony provided safety for the inhabitants of the large home. Other windows were posted around the castle, yet they were dark. Above the archway, another balcony was there, above that, was a white clock that finished the castle's fantastic demeanor.

In the front of Main Street, a little elevated area was filled with fences, people, and of course, Goofy and Pluto.

"Shizuru-sensei..." Miya began, clutching Shizuru's hand, "can we go see Goofy and Pluto?"

Shizuru smiled and nodded, saying, "Hey, kids, let's go see Goofy and Pluto."

The line was very long, but the group was persistent, and they stayed until they met the characters.

They had already met Goofy, and now, they were fourth in line to see Pluto. Shizuru had her camera ready, and she was prepared to take a picture and then give the photos to the patient's families. Natsuki was sitting on the ground, despite what Shizuru told her, and Arika was playing with Miya's hair.

Natsuki looked up into the sun but quickly cringed and hissed while she hid her face. Shizuru chuckled, getting Natsuki's attention, making the girl stand up and snuggle into her doctor's hold. Shizuru didn't mind the heat from Natsuki, but they had to separate due to advancing in the line.

"Shizuru! Shizuru! We're gonna see Pluto!" Arika smiled, pointing at the yellow dog.

"Okay you guys, one more group is ahead of us. Remember to be nice to Pluto, okay?" Shizuru warned, taking the group closer to the character. In a matter of minutes, it was their turn. The worker next to Pluto had long orange hair, and she wore light brown pants and a blue shirt. She came up to Shizuru, smiling, and she welcomed the group to Pluto.

"Pluto's waiting for you kids! Go on, you can see him." the worker said. Turning to Shizuru, she added. "Would you like me to take the picture for you, ma'am?"

"Sure," Shizuru answered, "that would be great."

Shizuru took Natsuki's hand and moved to Pluto with Arika and Miya. Miya was hugging Pluto, and Arika was pouting that she wasn't getting a hug. Shizuru let Natsuki get settled for the picture, as well as the others.

"Okay, can you smile?" the worker said, earning toothy grins. "Ready? One, two...three."

The picture was taken, and SHizuru retrieved her camera from the woman before saying thank you and pulling the patient's away from Pluto and onto Main Street, USA. A picture was taken there as well, seeing as the castle would be a perfect background.

After that, the group made their way to the left, to Adventureland. Shizuru lead the group through the crowd, passed the Magic Carpets of Aladdin, The Enchanted Tiki Room, The Jungle Cruise, and The Swiss Family Robinson treehouse. Natsuki asked to go on those rides, but there was a different ride that Shizuru wanted to show.

Finally, they came upon a giant building with a pirate flag with the words, "Pirates of the Caribbean" written on it. Many people were in line, but the wait time said thirty minutes, so Shizuru decided to take her kids on that ride. While they were moving towards the front, Shizuru took this time to let the patients know about what lied ahead.

"Girls," Shizuru began, "this ride will have some scary things in it, but I think you can handle them. Natsuki, I want you to sit by me, okay? Remember, it's just a ride."

Natsuki frowned at Shizuru and draped her arm around Arika, pulling her closer while boasting, "I'm not afraid of anything!"

'Except elevators...' contemplated Shizuru.

When they could see the loading platform, Shizuru quickly came up with an idea. "Natsuki, will you be our pirate captain?"

"Who said I wouldn't!?" Natsuki snapped playfully.

"Arika, you can be Natsuki's first mate, and Miya and I will be your prisoners, how about that?"

Miya nodded, and Arika puffed up her chest and smiled grimly in agreement.

Approaching the riding boat, Natsuki noticed the dark tunnel that they would be heading into, as well as the water in which the boat floated. A hint of fear slide past her, but she huffed, remembering that she was captain.

"How many?" A man said to them.

"Four, sir."

"Alright then, please go to row three." He pointed to a number on the floor that did say 'three', and the group followed the gesture and got in line. As the full boat of tourists was set off, Natsuki looked back at the boat that she would be riding in. It was small, a little wet, but the seat was long enough for all four to fit on it.

"Please enter your ship, pirates, and please keep your hands and feet inside the boat while it is in motion. Thank you!"

Arika went in first, followed by Natsuki, Shizuru, and Miya. Natsuki had her arms crossed, and her face looked like a mad bull's, but she was captain, she had to be tough.

"Captain! Ready to set sail!"

"Fine."

Almost on queue, the boat lurched forward, and the ride began. The other people on the boat laughed and chuckled at Natsuki and Arika, not because it was dumb, but because it was cute.

"Secure the prisoners, Arika."

Arika nodded and turned to Miya and Shizuru who were snuggling. "Don't try to escape, or I'll throw you overboard!"

"~~Dead men tell no tales~~" The ride spoke soon, startling the young captain, and she looked forward to see smoke with the shillouette of a man.

"Blackbeard." Shizuru murmured, pulling Miya closer.

Blackbeard spoke, but Natsuki and Arika were too busy trying to grab the smoke that was falling from the ceiling as the passed through Edward Teach.

"He won't come...will he?" Shizuru asked Natsuki.

"Not unless I tell him too!" Natsuki began. "I will-" stopping, Natsuki noticed the next exhibit of the ride.

Dead people. Skeletons. A few skeletons were scattered over the fake sand, and one was pinned to the wall with a rusty cutlass. Natsuki had no time for fear, for another skeleton emerged. This one looked angry, and he stood upon a broken ship in his ripped clothes.

The turn was slow, but the darkness was seen again, and the group went into the tunnel, surprised when they dropped over a slope that lead directly into a pirate battle.

"Secure the mainmast!" Natsuki barked to Arika, who immediately pretended to hold the mast.  
Cannon fire was portrayed with an explosion of red and orange light, and water blasted upward as if the cannon ball had struck the water.

Natsuki growled, made her hand into a gun, and started firing at a captain on one of the ships.

"Bang! Bang!" shouted Natsuki.

"Where be Captain Jack Sparrow?" the animatronic pirate asked.

"Huh?" Natsuki whispered.

"Find Captain Jack Sparrow, and we might get to hold him for a ransom!" Arika said to Natsuki as they entered a city.

Behind a few barrels after the sight of a tied up man being drowned in a well, was Captain Jack.  
"There he is! I found him!" Natsuki shouted, getting ready to jump out of the boat.

Before she could get anywhere, Shizuru grabbed her backside and pulled her back down into her seat. Natsuki hissed at her, only to be scolded.

"You do not leave this, Captain."

"Who are you to tell me orders?!" Natsuki yelled, making the others on the boat turn and look at her.  
"Pardon, Captain, we don't know how to pilot a ship, with you gone, we will die." Shizuru said, happy when Natsuki understood.

"Fine! Don't think I won't get that pirate!"

"Very well, Captain." Shizuru said, leaning back to enjoy the rest of the ride.

At the end of the ride, Captain Jack was sitting in a jeweled chair that was surrounded by numerous amounts of treasure. Natsuki wanted the shiny objects, but Shizuru told her Captain that they would be entering port soon, so the girl was no longer a pirate, therefore, she didn't need loot.

Shizuru took the girls out of the store that was at the exit of the ride, and she led them out into the heat of a bright, sunny, Florida day. Natsuki was holding Arika's hand next to Miya, who was close to Shizuru. Soon, they made their way over a wooden bridge.

"Look, kids, it's Splash Mountain." Shizuru said, stopping the group in the middle of the bridge.  
Sure enough, a 'mountain' surrounded by a mote of water filled with briars was a curious sight to see. While they were admiring it, a log came out of the tunnel at the top of the mountain, but it bolted downward into the briar patch.

"I wanna ride that!"

After about an hour, the group was drenched from the five story drop. Natsuki was laughing with the other girls, but Shizuru had to hide her agitation of being wet. Even though it was a negative, the doctor kept the group moving.

"It's twelve thirty, we are going to go spend an hour at Tom Sawyer's Island and then we are going to go grab some lunch." Shizuru explained. "After lunch we'll go to Liberty Square, where we will ride the Haunted Mansion; then we will head over to Fantasyland; then we'll go to Tommorowland before dinner. Is that alright with everyone?"

Nodding, Natsuki, Arika, and Miya boarded the motor raft and traveled to Tom Sawyer's Island.

"Aoi, you want to finish where we left off?"

Chie pressed herself up against Aoi while they crowded in the bathroom stall next to Snow White's Scary Adventures. Aoi wrapped her arms around Chie's waist and allowed herself to be set down on the toilet seat.

"How about we finish that at the hotel?" Aoi whispered, finally realizing that they were not alone in the bathroom.

Chie frowned and pressed her lips against Aoi's, saying, "I ache for you...Aoi..."

"I know. I know. Listen, we can finish this tonight, okay? Let's think of today as a date?"

"I can agree to that."

Mai and Tomoe waited outside the bathroom for a little bit before Chie and Aoi showed back up. They walked up to the two, hand in hand, smiling at their love for each other.

"I can't wait, Aoi, for tonight." Chie whispered into her lover's ear.

"Haruka, come here, it's alright, we have to wait our turn like everyone else." Yukino said to Haruka who was growling at the woman in front of her, Yukino, and Shiho.

They were waiting in line for the chance to see a few of the Disney princesses. They were located in Tony's, a restaurant, and it had air conditioning, so the three girl's felt relieved, well, too an extent.  
Shiho stood behind Haruka, moving her head back and forth uncontrollably. Her pigtails bobbed at the motion, and she was being stared at, but to her it went along unnoticed.

"She cut me!" Haruka shouted, drawing more attention.

The woman had an angry look on her face as her child clung to her leg in fear of the raging Haruka.

"Haruka, you calm down right now." Yukino said sternly, grabbing Haruka's arm.

Haruka jerked out of Yukino's grip and yelled loudly at the family in front of them. Yukino shook her head while she moved in front of Haruka too push her away from her victims.

"I'm terribly sorry, I don't know what's getting in to her." Yukino apologized to the woman.

"She! She! She cut! Cutter! You are a cutter!" Haruka continued.

Yukino had enough. They had come this far in the line and she was not going to let Haruka get them kicked out, so she began the specific method she used to calm Haruka down.

"Haruka, one."

Haruka's face turned red, and she stepped back, but she was still grumbling about the woman.

"Two."

"But she cut me!"

"Three."

Haruka was silent, and she turned back to the woman to mouth an apology before the angered girl moved to Yukino and began to cry in her shoulder.

"Doctor Yukariko, do you think we could wait in line for the Laugh Floor?" Midori asked, adjusting her arm that was linked to Nao's.

Yukariko smiled, and nodded.

"The line's over here, come on!" Midori said excitedly, tugging Nao over to the long line.

Yukariko followed slowly, and she decided to wait quietly.

"I don't want to wait in this line." Nao complained.

"Oh, come on. It'll be fun." Midori said.

"Did you see? I was like, pew, pew, pew! And then Zurg was like BOOM! I saved the galaxy!"

Nagi groaned and boarded the little train that was the Tommorowland Transit Authority behind Fumi.  
Takeda had gotten a high score in Buzz Lightyear's Star Command, and now he wouldn't stop bragging about it.

Fumi was practically emotionless, only she had a smile on her face, and Nagi was already asleep as the train began to move.

"Grim grinning ghosts come out to socialize!" Natsuki sang as the group approached the Mad Tea Party ride.

"Now don't close your eyes and don't try to hide, or a silly spook may sit by your side! Shrouded in a daft disguise, they pretend to terrorize, grim grinning ghosts come out to socialize!"

Shizuru smiled at Natsuki and Arika. They had experienced all of the rides in Fantasyland, except the Tea Party, but they couldn't get the Haunted Mansion's tune out of their heads. Miya was almost asleep, and she was being carried by Shizuru. She hated the Haunted Mansion, but she saw that Natsuki and Arika weren't scared, so she hid her fear.

"Can we go on the Tea Party ride?" Arika asked.

"Maybe later. I think I'm going to let you two go on the Tommorowland Indy Speedway. I'm going to watch Miya." Shizuru answered, adjusting Miya.

"I don't wanna do it without Shizuru!" Natsuki said loudly, running to a bench in the shade.

"Or we can sit for a while." Shizuru giggled, following Arika who was sprinting after Natsuki.

About an hour or two later, the group was sitting at Tony's with the rest of the Fuuka Mental Institution individuals. Natsuki was asleep on Shizuru, but the others were explaining how fun their day was while they ingested their dinner.

"Let's see the fireworks after!"

"I saw Mickey in a parade!"

"I saw Rupunzel!"

"Look's like you all had a fun day. I do agree with the fireworks." Shizuru added.

Shizuru was almost ready to turn in for the night, but she was also excited for the fireworks. At the end of dinner, Shizuru took her group out onto the porch of Tony's and they sat next to the fake, metal statue of Goofy. Shizuru pulled Natsuki into her lap and let Miya and Arika lean on them.

"I'm excited for the fireworks!"

Soon, a giant eruption of colors illuminated the sky. Bright yellow and blue, sea green and brilliant red, it was truly a sight to see. A song played in the background, almost drowning out the loud explosions of the fireworks as they shot up into the sky to show their true colors.

After a while, Shizuru looked down at Natsuki with a warm smile, only to see the girl was sleeping peacefully with a small grin on her face.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Yawning, Arika fell onto her bed with a thud, saying, "I'm not sleepy..."

Miya chuckled and climbed up the later that led to her bed, and she jumped under the covers and snuggled after clutching her pillow. Drifting to sleep, Miya let Shizuru make sure she was tucked in.

Natsuki was asleep on Shizuru's bed, and she gently breathed in and out as her chest rose and fell. Shizuru made to move the girl to her bed, but she didn't want to wake the girl up, so she would let Natsuki sleep deeply for a little while before the bluenette would be moved to her own bed.

"Arika, dear, close your eyes, alright?" Shizuru said calmly, moving over to Arika and kneeling down.

She moved the covers over Arika's shoulders and tucked the girl in so she could feel safe while she slept. She brushed the hair out of Arika's flushed face before standing up to go change into her own pajamas. Natsuki was the only one that would be sleeping in her day clothes, but the girl needed her sleep!

They had another big day in the morning, for they were heading to Animal Kingdom for half of the day, and then they would travel to Epcot. It would be a tough one, but it was filled with fun, so Shizuru assumed that the kids would be able to handle it.

"Ara, I think I'm as tired as they are." Shizuru whispered, stepping into the bathroom to ready herself for bed.

...

In line for Expedition Everest, Shizuru held Natsuki's back to her front with her arms wrapped around the bluenette's slender waste. They were alone for the time being, due to the fact that Natsuki completely lost it at breakfast and caused the destruction of the entire dining room. Arika had tried to follow Natsuki, but the teenager turned around hissed meanly at Arika, making the girl cry. Miya and Arika had gone with Yukino, and Shizuru had taken Natsuki away to spend the morning together.

Shaking for absolutely no reason, Natsuki moaned loudly and threw her head back on Shizuru's shoulder, nearly head butting her doctor. She was trying to walk away from Shizuru, but she was walking in place, which didn't get her anywhere. Shizuru was gently, but securely, holding the girl, ignoring the looks they were getting from the other people in line.

"Maaa..." Natsuki murmured, letting her head drop off of Shizuru's shoulder and roll around on her own shoulders.

Suddenly, a woman tapped Shizuru's shoulder, making her turn and release Natsuki. Surprisingly, Natsuki didn't go anywhere, but she cuddled back into Shizuru. The woman who had gotten Shizuru's attention looked rather snotty, and she had a Coach purse draped over her shoulder while her young boy child and husband stood behind her.

"May I help you, ma'am?" Shizuru asked, smiling politely.

"Disney World isn't a place for lesbians." she snapped, out of the blue.

Shizuru's face grew dark, and before she was about to speak, the woman interrupted her.

"Your behavior is completely unaceptable."

"And what makes you assume that we are lesbians?" Shizuru asked, gravely.

The woman scoffed, and her husband stepped forward, passing the son to the woman.

"You are showing affection toward her, and that is not appropriate in Disney World."

Shizuru hid her anger behind a mask of rock. Natsuki was now looking between Shizuru and the offenders, trying to catch a grasp of what was going on. In response to Natsuki's curious look, the man frowned at her, making the bluenette shrink closer to Shizuru.

"I can have you thrown out of Disney World for this, you are a terrible example for young children here, and that is-"

Shizuru cut the man off, saying, "I do not believe we are causing any harm, right Natsuki?"

Natsuki looked at Shizuru and buried her face into Shizuru's chest. Bad move. The man thought that Natsuki was biting and nipping at Shizuru's breast, so he stepped closer to Shizuru with a clenched fist.

"Sir, I request you step back." Shizuru said, feeling Natsuki start to whimper.

Turning her back to the man, Shizuru kept Natsuki away from the two, and she attempted to ignore them, but they kept ranting. It took a while for them to stop, but they had indeed crossed the line, Natsuki was crying, and a few other people started to listen in on the conversation.

"Mama, what's going on?"

"Dad look!"

"What is that family doing?"

"Why is that girl crying? Poor thing."

"What's going on?" A teenage boy, about seventeen, stepped up with his hand still interlocked with his girlfriend.

"It's none of your business." The snotty woman snapped.

Ignoring her, the boy smiled at Shizuru, and then looked down at Natsuki. He was a black haired boy taller than Natsuki but a little shorter than Shizuru.

"Are you two okay? Is there anything I can do to help?" he asked, allowing his girlfriend to come up and nod in agreement.

"You two aren't in this conversation! Back off!" The man hissed.

"What did they do to you, sir?" the girl asked, stepping forward.

"They are polluting the minds of my son, with their lesbian acts!" The woman growled.

"You don't know that-"

"Hey! What's going on!" A worker was finally there, and she turned to the family, asking them, "What's the problem?"

"These lesbians are practically making out here!"

The woman turned to Shizuru, and looked curiously at her. "Is this true?"

"No ma'am. Here you go." Shizuru said, handing the woman her ID card.

"Shizuru Fujino, Fuuka Mental Institution."

"Also, here's Natsuki's registration to the hospital. She has autism, and I'm her doctor."

The worker turned to the family who was red. "Next time, mind your own business." She turned to Shizuru. "Here, I'll take you to the front of the line, I'm sorry this happened."

...

"Yes, we will meet you at Epcot. Natsuki is having a little issue, it might take me a while to get her out of the park." Shizuru said into her phone.

It was a white Iphone, and Shizuru was granted it when she got the promotion from Yukino. Natsuki had been admiring the phone, but something else caught her eyes. Natsuki was in a store at the back of the park, a store that was after the ride "Dinosaur".

"Probably around three or four."

Natsuki was sitting on the ground playing with a box that encased a toy dinosaur. She threw it on the ground, picked it up again, and threw it.

Shizuru saw this, and she put her phone back into her pocket before snatching Natsuki up and out of the store. Natsuki screeched in the process, but Shizuru quickly pulled out a pretzel stick and shoved it in Natsuki's mouth. Right then, Natsuki stopped yelling and sucked on the pretzel while she interlocked her fingers with Shizuru as they walked to the front of the park.

"Natsuki, are you having fun?"

Natsuki looked up at Shizuru and nodded vigorously before chomping down on the pretzel until it was gone.

"I'm glad."

"Shizuru is Natsuki's best friend."

"You're mine too, Natsuki."

They walked hand in hand until they reached the bus area. Shizuru looked at the directory that showed which bus they should get on, and she figured that she would have to take Natsuki to the transportation center, where they would ride the monorail to Epcot.

"Natsuki, let's go, shall we?"

"Okay!"

On the bus, they were only accompanied by another family with twins. They watched Natsuki intently, thinking she was quite interesting. It was amusing to them how Natsuki would occasionally crawl in and out of Shizuru's lap, how she would bob her head up and down, and how the girl would rock back and forth as she gently patted the floor of the bus.

"Hi!" one of the twins said, crawling up the steps to meet Natsuki.

Natsuki stopped moving, and she looked at the girl who was about seven. The twin had white hair and wore a cute jumpsuit that was just like her sister's, only a different color. She placed her hand on Natsuki's seat, which helped the child propel herself up onto the seat across from Natsuki.

"Little girl says hi." Natsuki said, amused when the girl giggled lightly.

"I'm Rachel! Who are you?"

"Natsuki."

Suddenly another girl appeared, plopping her butt in the seat next to her sister and across from Shizuru. She wore a blue jumpsuit, and she was also smiling.

"I'm Tay!"

"Kids, don't be rude." The mother said, following her kids with her husband behind her. They all sat together, observing Natsuki.

"Natsuki likes little people." the bluenette said in third person.

"I'm not little! I'm almost eight!"

Natsuki hissed at the girl and buried her head in Shizuru's stomach, mumbling a random sentence about some animal she had seen at the previous theme park. The child whom Natsuki had hissed at, Rachel, barked at Natsuki while Tay started to make monkey noises.

Shizuru started to laugh, but when Natsuki turned her head back to the children and hissed at them, Shizuru said, "Ara, looks like we have some stowaways from Animal Kingdom."

"I'm a snake!" Natsuki said, sticking her tongue out at the twins.

"I'm Brandon, this is my wife Christine." the father said, extending his hand out to Shizuru who shook it politely.

"Doctor Shizuru Fujino," Shizuru replied, "it's great to meet you."

"Doctor, huh? What's your field?"

"Psychology, I work in Michigan at the Fuuka Mental Institution."

The woman smiled, saying, "Really? That must be a tough job. You get paid well, yes?"

"I get paid very well."

"So this must be your...?" The man added, gesturing to Natsuki.

Shizuru answered him, "Patient. We brought a few of the patients along, but Natsuki had some problems with a few of them, so I had to take her separately."

"So it's like a field trip?"

"Yes."

Bringing the adults out of their conversation, Tay and Rachel pounced on Natsuki, making the girl open her mouth like she was going to eat the children, but instead, she began to tighten her grip around the children like she was constricting them.

"Kids, get off of her, that's completely absurd!" the mother yelled, looking at Shizuru.

"It's alright, Natsuki loves children, so long as they don't-" Shizuru stopped, seeing the children's faces turn blue and their cheeks puff up. "Natsuki, do not hurt them, play nice."

"Ssssnakes consstrict thingssss..." Natsuki murmured to Shizuru.

Shizuru sighed, starting, "One."

Natsuki looked at Shizuru, instantly putting the children down. She knew if Shizuru had gotten to three they would go back to the hotel for the night, and Natsuki did not want to leave.

The children all but crawled right back into Natsuki's lap, wrapping their arms around the bluenette in a hug.

"Tay, Rachel, come sit down, I don't want you standing." the father said, happy when his children returned to their own seats.

Shizuru pulled Natsuki closer, securing the girl around the waist. Complying, Natsuki rested her head on Shizuru's shoulder, while the bus kept moving toward their destination.

"So, where are you from?" Shizuru asked.

"We're from Wisconsin."

Natsuki's head shot up and she screamed, "Cheese!"

"Natsuki hush!"

They enjoyed the ride to the transportation system, but they had to part ways when the twins and their parents boarded the Magic Kingdom monorail and Shizuru and Natsuki boarded the Epcot monorail.

It was cramped inside the section of the magnetic mover, and it smelled fowl like animal droppings. Natsuki noticed that first, and she told Shizuru who was holding onto the hand rail while she tried to keep Natsuki from standing up.

When the train began to move, Natsuki jumped in her seat, but when they were out of the station, the girl was mesmerized at the sights she could see out of the window. She saw a large lake, and people were boating on it as well as using their jet skis. She watched the people who were parasailing, and she was absolutely drawn to all of the attention.

Shizuru relaxed, seeing as Natsuki wasn't going to put up a fight on this trip. In a matter of minutes, they arrived at Epcot.

Shizuru grasped Natsuki's hand as they walked down the ramp to go to bag check and ticket distribution, but as soon as Natsuki saw the giant ball, Spaceship Earth, she wiggled out of Shizuru's hold and bolted to the entrance, leaving Shizuru shocked.

"Natsuki! Come back here!" Shizuru shouted, frowning as she sped up to catch Natsuki.

Shizuru started to panic. Natsuki was running straight for a group of people in line for the tickets. Natsuki crashed into a young man, sending him to the ground while she kept her rampage. She was being called for by the police officers as well as Shizuru, who was hustling toward a Disney worker for help.

The man whom Shizuru had talked to pulled out a walkie-talkie and notified that a girl with blue hair was running around the entrance of the park, and backup was needed. The man also did not forget to mention that Natsuki was autistic.

"We'll catch her for you ma'am, just sit here, and we'll get her for you. Natsuki was her name?"

"Yes, sir, please hurry, she's a loose cannon."

The man nodded and joined the police officers that were still in pursuit of Natsuki. A social worker was moving all of the tourists to the side, leaving room so that Natsuki wouldn't injure them or herself.

"Please stay calm everyone, just give your tickets to the far end."

Natsuki, practically going ballistic, ran through the legs of one officer, around another, and crawled over another. Soon, the officers backup had arrived, and they had made a circle around Natsuki, creating a barrier that would prevent her from escaping. The man that Shizuru had talked to was cautiously approaching Natsuki who was shaking and mumbling words under her breath.

"Sweetie, I'm just going to take you back to your friend." he said calmly, finally reaching Natsuki.

He placed his hand on her shoulder, and she began to struggle, but the man twirled her around and held her tightly before dragging her back to Shizuru. Shizuru embraced Natsuki tightly, and thanked the man.

"Would you like a wheelchair, ma'am?" the man said, assuming that the chair would keep Natsuki safe.

"Yes please."

Notifying those with his communicator, the man was quickly granted access to bring one of the wheelchairs to Shizuru. He brought it over to them, and asked Shizuru if she would like any help in getting Natsuki to cooperate with them.

Shizuru nodded, and she brought Natsuki to the wheelchair and set her down in it, not surprised when the girl screamed and began to stutter and cry. The man held Natsuki's shoulders down while Shizuru found the strap, and she hooked it over Natsuki's waist, making sure it was tight. She then strapped Natsuki's legs down, leaving her arms free.

"Doesn't she know how to unbuckle it?" the man asked.

"I took care of that. It's an old trick I learned when I was in training."

"Are you sure you are alright?"

"Yes, I really appreciated your help."

"All in a days work, ma'am."

...

Shizuru pushed Natsuki through the crowds and to the area where Yukino had told her to meet the rest of her group.

Under the Electric Umbrella, a restaurant in Future World, Yukino sat with Haruka wrapped in her arms and surrounded by the others.

"Doctor Shizuru's back." Midori stated, struggling to hold up a disgruntled Nao who nearly puked after riding the extreme version of Mission Space.

"Looks like Natsuki got into some trouble." Yukino murmured, setting Haruka into the seat next to her.

Yukino approached Shizuru and a moaning Natsuki, with curious eyes.

"What happened?" Yukino asked, worried.

"It's a long story, I will tell you later."

Yukino smiled and bent down to Natsuki. Lifting the girl's chin, Yukino pulled a napkin out of her pocket and wiped the tears and drool away from Natsuki's face.

"M-mama..." Natsuki whispered, closing her eyes.

"What did she say?"

"She wants her mom." Yukino answered, gesturing for Shizuru to go and join the rest of the group.

When they arrived, Arika threw herself into Shizuru's arms as Miya began to do the same thing. Arika wanted to give Natsuki a hug, but the girl was in a state of mind where she was unresponsive. Shizuru welcomed her girls with care, and asked them how their day was going.

"Mai, can Chie and I go look at that big fountain over there?" Aoi asked, starring at the water that bubbled up and over the sides of the rocks that outlined the inner pool of the fountain.

"You can see it from here, right?" Mai said, noticing Chie let her hand trail around Aoi's waist.

"I guess so."

Yukino was ready to let everyone know about the rest of the day so she called the different authorities over to her.

"Okay, now that everyone is here, I just wanted to let you know about dinner. We have a reservation at seven. We're going to eat at Germany."

"That sounds fun." Mai said.

"Until then," Yukino continued, "We well stay together."

"So where will we be going first?"

"It's almost five, so we have a few hours."

"Let's take the kids over to the ride with Ellen DeGeneres."

"That ride is a bit loud." Shizuru said.

"I think we can handle it, if we warn them."

"Alright. Let's head over there now."

...

Because Natsuki was in a wheelchair, the group had to sit in the back where a wheelchair stand was. Natsuki was strapped in, and she slept through the entire ride, but Shizuru was happy that the girl did, for Shizuru wouldn't have been allowed to sit next to her to calm the bluenette if she were to get scared.

When the ride was over, the group had trouble finding something to do, so they waited for another show. Natsuki was awake by then, and she was very quiet, but only because Shizuru was next to her. Around six thirty, the group went over to Germany to partake in the year long Oktoberfest. Yukino had checked in, and they were soon going to be seated. Yukino chose this restuarant because of the live entertainment. On a stage in the front of the area, was a band that would play music. The children and guests were even allowed to go to a designated area in front of the stage to dance and have fun.

When they were called, the hostess brought them to a table on the first floor, where the dancing would occur. Natsuki took the seat at the edge of the table, across from Shizuru, and the rest of them crowded in and sat down. The waitress would bring them their drinks soon enough, but as for now, they were allowed to get their dinner from the buffet.

Mai and Midori were in charge of the patients at the table, seeing as the other doctors went to get the kids their food. It took the doctors a couple trips, but eventually they returned with everyone's food.

Shizuru set a huge plate of macaroni and cheese before Natsuki, and distributed the other meals amongst the cluster of people. When Shizuru looked back at Natsuki, the macaroni was gone, and cheese was smothered all over Natsuki's muzzle.

A little later in the event, Natsuki was allowed out of her wheelchair to go dance with Arika. Shizuru kept an eye on them, but she was also happy that the girls were having so much fun. When the performers on the stage told everyone to exit the dance floor due to a song that would require a table of bells, Natsuki did not move. The cart with the bells was rolled out, and the lead performer stepped up to the table. Before he began to perform, he noticed that Natsuki was about two feet away, staring at him.

Shizuru was burying her head in her hands, but she kept calling Natsuki away. Others tried to get the girl to come over, but Natsuki was oblivious. Thankfully the man noticed the identification card that was connected to Natsuki's necklace, so he would treat Natsuki nicely.

"And what is your name, Miss?" He said, noticing Shizuru sigh in relief.

"Natsuki."

"And Natsuki, how old are you?"

"I don't remember."

The audience chuckled, assuming that there was something wrong with Natsuki. The man stepped to the side and helped Natsuki up before calling her closer to the bells.

"Are you having fun, Natsuki?"

"Yeah."

The performer smiled. "Would you like to play a song with the bells?"

Natsuki smiled and nodded. The performer stepped aside to let Natsuki play. He showed her where the high bells were and where the low bells were, and then he told her to go ahead.

Natsuki cautiously picked up one of the bells and shook it, creating a high noted jingle. Curiously, Natsuki put that bell down, and picked up another, shaking it until it made music. Soon, Natsuki was quickly picking up bells and switching high and low, making wonderful music. Shizuru as well as the audience was surprised at how catchy Natsuki's music was. They let the bluenette perform for five minutes, but before he could he could tell Natsuki to stop, she put the bells down and ran back to Shizuru.

"Well, let's hear it for miss Natsuki!" the man said, followed by an eruption of applause.

The night ended quickly, and the group entered their hotel rooms quite exhaustedly. The next day would be spent at the pool, followed by Hollywood Studios in the afternoon. The day after that, would be spent at the pool again, followed by Magic Kingdom. Finally, the following day, the group would go home.

It had been a fun trip so far, but the money had to run out at some point. It would be good to go home. After all, the group was tired, and they needed to return to the hospital.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

"I thought Hollywood Studios was really cool!" Arika murmured as she sat on top of Shizuru's bed with Miya and Natsuki.

Shizuru was searching through the channels to find the Disney cartoon channel, and when she found it, she sat on the bed next to Natsuki. It was around eleven in the morning, and Shizuru wanted to have some downtime, so she let the others play at the pool while her group played in the hotel room.

As planned, later in the afternoon the group would head over to the Magic Kingdom, play in the park, eat at the Chrystal Palace, then they would return back to the hotel where they would sleep so they could get up early in the morning and travel back to the hospital.

"Oh, I almost forgot. I'm going to make sure we see Mickey tonight. Right before dinner." Shizuru said, amused when Natsuki's face lit up. "Until then, we are going to relax. I don't know about you kids but I'm tired."

"Can we play a game?" Arika asked, looking at Shizuru.

"I suppose, just we can't leave the room."

"Okay. Well, I thought we could play 'house'! Shizuru, you can be the mommy, and I want to be the kid!" Arika explained.

"What do I get to be!?" Natsuki shouted, earning a glare from Miya.

"Natsuki, how about you be the older sister, and Miya, you can be the baby?" Shizuru offered.

Natsuki stuck her tongue out and shook her head. She was about to say something, but Miya crawled over to Shizuru and sat in her lap before saying, "I want to be the cat."

"Cool!" Arika shouted, staring up at Natsuki who was pouting.

"I wanna be the baby." Natsuki grumbled.

"Natsuki will be the baby." Shizuru concluded. "Arika, how about you tell us about this game."

"Okay, so when we were little our daddy died, and then these things came and tried to kidnap us so we've been on the run for months."

Shizuru almost started laughing at how Arika came up with that idea so quickly. Either way, she watched the girls get into their positions. Natsuki wrapped herself in a bed sheet and lay down on the bed, or her 'crib', Miya crawled into a chair and meowed like a cat, Arika got on the floor and opened a magazine she had got from the bedside table, and Shizuru stood up to be the mother.

Natsuki started the game off, begining to mewl like a little infant. She gurgled and buried her face in the pillow, before she started to cry. Arika cringed and turned to Natsuki, sticking out her tongue at the girl.

"Be quiet baby!" Arika barked.

Shizuru came over, scooped Natsuki up in her arms and gently began rocking the girl back and forth until she stopped crying. Arika became jealous, but she hid it well.

"Whose a good baby?" Shizuru cooed to Natsuki before she sat down on her own bed.

"Baaa..." Natsuki giggled, touching Shizuru's cheek.

Shizuru stopped. She looked down into Natsuki's emerald orbs. That forest of green peered up at her, sparkling in the light of the sun that was shining in through the window. At Natsuki's touch, Shizuru's face heated up and a blush blossomed across her face. Natsuki's hand was warm, and it made Shizuru's heart pound with anxiety. The question was, anxiety for what?

...

"Natsuki, are you excited to see Mickey? We're almost there!" Shizuru said, holding Natsuki's hand.

They were in Tony's restaurant in the back of the building, waiting in line to see the Big Cheese. Natsuki was speechless, and she tightened her grip around Shizuru's fingers. She was so excited to see Mickey. It had been her dream since the beggining of the trip, and now as a finale of some sort, she was completely ecstatic.

After they saw Mickey, the group would head over to the Crystal Palace, eat dinner with Pooh, Tigger, Eyeyor, and Piglet, then, as a final event, they would watch the parade and fireworks. After that, however, Yukino was going to let Natsuki and Shizuru spend the Extra Magic Hours alone at the Magic Kingdom. There, Shizuru would tell Natsuki the news.

Shizuru longed to tell Natsuki now, but she needed it to be a surprise. Saeko, Natsuki's mother, agreed to the proposition of Natsuki coming to live with Shizuru after the young teen would graduate from the mental institute. Shizuru would shorten her work hours at the hospital, and she would leave her apartment in the building and return to her cottage that was on a lake. She had a boat, which would cause loads of fun for Natsuki. Shizuru would have to get some new toys, and she would help Natsuki design her own room, which would be next to Shizuru's, of course. After Natsuki was settled, Shizuru would begin to care for Natsuki and coach her out of her autism and at the same time, Shizuru would try and build a relationship with the girl.

...

Sitting next to each other, in the middle of the Magic Kingdom, Natsuki and Shizuru watched the fireworks sparkle in the sky. Blue, red and green lights shot through the air as a result of frequent explosions. Different colored ashes floated to the ground after they had done their job. It was absolutely amazing.

Shizuru wrapped her arm around the girl's waist to pull her closer. When Natsuki's head was on her shoulder, Shizuru pressed her lips to that silky, cobalt hair before lifting Natsuki's chin.

"Natsuki, can I ask you something?" Shizuru asked, feeling her stomach start to flip in anticipation.

Nodding, Natsuki waited intently for what Shizuru had to say.

"I want you to come live with me at my home after you graduate from the Institution. I asked your mother and she said you are allowed to stay with me. I want you to understand, though, you would eat, sleep and play at my home, it would only be me and you. Do you think you would like to be a part of my family?" Shizuru finished, studying Natsuki's dumbfounded expression.

With hesitation, Natsuki replied, "No mama?"

Shizuru frowned inwardly, feeling a bit of jealousy bubble inside her heart. "No, mama. However, we can go see her many times and I told her she could visit anytime she wanted to."

"You want Natsuki in your family?" Natsuki asked in third person.

"Yes, Natsuki, I want to take care of you and love you."

"You know... Shizuru is very important to Natsuki. She feels safe and complete with Shizuru", Natsuki started, "but Natsuki would be a problem."

"No," Shizuru retorted, resting her forehead on Natsuki's, "no, you would be a blessing, Natsuki, please come and live with me. I feel that you are going to be very special to me in the future, even more than now. I love you, Natsuki, even though you are special in some ways. I have the need to take care and love you-"

"Natsuki loves Shizuru too."

Shizuru smiled, sliding her hand through Natsuki's dark tresses before guiding the girl's face closer to hers. Inch by inch their lips became closer and closer, until, finally, Shizuru felt herself closing her eyes and pressing her lips on Natsuki's. They sat there, with a beautiful bond connecting them as love circled around, binding them together. It was an agreement between the two, and they could finally spend their lives together. They would become a family, they would become one, and their love would last forever.


End file.
